Zero Egg, which makes a plant-based egg product, announced today that it has raised $5 million in Series A funding. The round was led by Powerplant Ventures, with participation from existing investors Unovis Asset Management/New Crop Capital and Strauss Group/The Kitchen Hub. This brings the total amount raised by Zero Egg to $8 million.
Based in Israel, Zero Egg just launched in the U.S. last month. The company’s egg product is a powder made primarily out of soy protein isolate and pea flour. It comes it two forms: the EGG Basis is used for scrambles and omelets, and the BAKE Basics is an egg replacement for baking.
Right now, Zero Egg is a B2B play, selling its egg replacement to food service companies and restaurants, though it plans to eventually sell to consumers. With the new funding, Zero Egg plans to grow its brand in the U.S. and launch new products over the coming year.
Though overall sales of plant-based foods have been growing over the past couple of years, plant-based eggs are a small category. According to the Good Food Institute (GFI), the plant-based egg category was only worth $10 million at the end of 2019. Though GFI noted that while the smallest, it is also the fastest growing category of plant-based foods.
Part of the reason for the small sales numbers for plant-based eggs is that they aren’t a suitable replacement for baking purposes. JUST Eggs, which are made from mung beans, are tasty as part of a burrito, but you wouldn’t make a cake with them. Over in the U.K., Crack’d launched its plant-based egg made from pea protein and nutritional yeast, which the company says can be used to make things like quiches and cookies (something we haven’t tested ourselves).
The Spoon’s Ashlen Weddington was sent a sample of a pre-made Zero Egg patty and thought it was pretty good. With today’s news, a lot more people here in the U.S. will be able to weigh in with their own thoughts on the eggless egg.
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