Jack and Bry, the creator of plant-based meats made out of Jackfruit, has secured £1.25 million in seed funding led by SFC Capital, with other backers including KM Capital, Rubix Ventures, and several high net worth private investors.
How will the funding be used?
The funding will be used to support further product innovation as the jackfruit pioneer targets more big-name customer acquisitions.
The latest funding follows the recent appointment of FMCG industry veterans including former Quorn chairman Clive Sharpe and Singha Europe MD David Flower to the management team.
Bryony Tinn-Disbury, the founder of Jack & Bry, said: “We know consumers are seeking out meat alternatives in ever greater numbers, but they are also seeking higher quality in the plant-based foods they buy. Key to that is an authentic recreation of taste and texture, and we’re proud to have developed a full retail range of branded jackfruit products to mimic all the meats to satisfy that demand.”
“Our ambition is to launch with another major supermarket in 2021 to help meet the booming demand. We predict the Veganuary effect will last throughout the whole year, not just January, and backed by our new investors and non-executive directors we are excited for the next stage of the journey at Jack & Bry.”
Range of meat alternatives
Based out of London, Jack & Bry has already created a range of innovative jackfruit meat alternatives, including burgers, mince, sausages, and its first product, its famous pepperoni pizza ingredient.
At present, the company supplies 138 Zizzi sites, 450 Papa John’s outlets in the UK and Netherlands, and 300 Sainsbury’s stores, with products also set to launch in The Vegan Kind and Central Foods.
Launched fish burger
Notably, the company also launched the UK’s first plant-based fast-food fish burger when it’s Fillet-no-Fish was added to the menu at Neat Burger, a plant-based restaurant chain backed by Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton.
Speaking about SFC Capital’s investment, Rohallah Ghasemi, Lead Investment Manager, said: “We are delighted to be supporting Jack & Bry with this seed funding. The team has already achieved incredible growth, and we are looking forward to working with them as they expand into more direct-to-consumer channels. Shoppers are looking to add more and more innovative non-meat alternatives to their usual staples, and this trend is only going to continue over the coming years. Jack & Bry is in a great position to lead this new market.”