NEW YORK — Gathered Foods, maker of plant-based seafood alternative brand Good Catch, has netted a number of celebrity investors, including Woody Harrelson, Shailene Woodley, Paris Hilton and Lance Bass. The new backing adds to the company’s recent $36.8 million Series B financing round, led by industry investors Greenleaf Foods and 301 INC, the venture arm of General Mills, Inc.
Good Catch products are available in more than 4,500 retail outlets across the United States and United Kingdom. The brand offers fish-free tuna formulated with a blend of peas, beans and lentils and algal oil, a plant source of omega-3 fatty acids. Other products include plant-based alternatives to fish burgers and cakes and crab cakes. The company is planning new innovation and additional international distribution later this year.
“Consumer demand and culinary trends show the evolving excitement for plant-based foods, and the unified support from such an influential group goes far beyond funding alone,” said Chris Kerr, co-founder and chief executive officer of Gathered Foods. “The message underscored by their backing is invaluable. We are thrilled to welcome all of our new investors and are hopeful for the growth and continued innovation their endorsement creates.”
US plant-based animal protein alternative companies have raised $2.7 billion in venture capital in the past decade, according to the Good Food Institute, a Washington-based non-profit that advocates for the alternative protein industry. Forty-five percent, or $1.2 billion, was raised in 2019 and the first quarter of 2020 alone.