Plant-based food company Green Monday Holdings has raised $70 million in new funding led by TPG’s The Rise Fund and Swire Pacific, according to a press release sent to The Spoon. The round also includes participation from CPT Capital, Jefferies Group, Sino Group’s NG Family Trust, artist Wang Leehom, and Room to Read founder John Wood. Existing investors, including Lee Kum Kee Health Products Group’s Happiness Capital and individual investorsJames Cameron, Mary McCartney, and Susan Rockefeller, also participated.
The Hong Kong-based Green Monday enterprise has multiple branches. It operates OmniFoods, which makes plant-based meat alternative OmniPork, as well as Green Common, a retailer and restaurant for plant-based foods. The Green Monday Foundation, meanwhile, is a charitable organization that aims to raise awareness about the importance of living more sustainable lifestyles. The enterprise as a whole reaches multiple countries, including Japan, China, the U.S., the U.K., and Thailand.
OmniFoods debuted OmniPork on mainland China a little less than one year ago. Since then, the company has expanded across that market, landing in both retailers and QSR chains like Taco Bell and Starbucks.
This new funding round comes at a time when both investment and interest in plant-based meat is up worldwide. In a recent report, investor network FAIRR said that while the U.S. is still the largest market for alternative proteins, China, along with the rest of the Asia-Pacific region, is catching up.
Not surprisingly, that means Green Monday is not the only company expanding its alt-protein business in that region. Beyond Meat just announced it will build production facilities in China. Starfield, which recently raised $10 million and launched in 20 restaurant chains across China, is another established player to contend with.
Green Monday said this funding round is the largest of its kind to date in Asia. It will use this new capital to expand research and development as well as its retail networks, and boost its production, distribution, and supply chain capabilities. It plans to increase global operations to over 20 markets across Asia, EMEA and North America, as well as open Green Common flagship stores in China and Singapore.
