Raleigh startup’s alternative to ‘Impossible Burger’ makes case for $6M in funding at Venture Connect

(Editor’s note: This is the fourth in a series of exclusive reports from the CED’s Venture Connect conference written by WRAL TechWire contributor Sarah Glova.)

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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK – Jellatech, a Raleigh-based startup that is creating animal-free collagen protein and gelatin, presented at CED Venture Connect stage on Thursday, pitching their cellular agriculture solution as a “clean, ethical, sustainable and safe” alternative to animal-based collagen.

The startup is creating collagen based on a small, non-invasive skin biopsy, which does not harm the animal.

“That animal can continue to live on and thrive,” said Stephanie Michelsen, Founder & CEO of Jellatech, during her pitch presentation.

In these days of ever-growing alnteratives to animal protein (think “Impossible Burger”), Jellatech is taking a unique approach.

“A growing number of startups are researching proteins that can be made as alternatives to meat proteins,” wrote NCBiotech writer Frank Vinluan last year. “But Michelsen found none addressing collagen, a protein key to making many foods, wine and beer, cosmetics, and even some pharmaceuticals.”

Jellatech has developed its own extraction and purification process to select cells from the biopsy, grow those cells, then produce a high yield of high-quality, fully functional collagen—all without taking more than a biopsy from an animal.

“We’ve developed technology around optimizing the conditions to really make the cells grow fast and make a lot of collagen,” said Michelsen, “about a 400% increase from where we started just a year and a half ago.

Going meatless: Raleigh startup produces key food protein without using any animals

Michelsen said that Jellatech is wrapping up their bench-scale stage and moving on to analytical verification.

“We’ve done a few different studies, comparing our collagen to a research-grade, standard collagen from an animal,” said Michelsen, “and I’m very excited to see that so far, we’re ticking all the boxes for making it bio-identical to what you would get from an animal.”

According to her pitch, Michelsen and the Jellatech team will be sending samples to their eight industry partners, so those partners can test the collagen product and compare it to what they are currently using.

Jellatech is a B2B company, focused on providing commercial-grade, cell-based collagen to biomedical companies, with a goal of eventually focusing on cosmetics, personal care, supplements, and then, finally, food and beverage applications.

Jellatech is supported by Big Idea Ventures (BIV) and by Sustainable Food Ventures, a fund launched by Wild Earth Co-Founder and CEO Ryan Beethencourt, who recently relocated to the Raleigh-Durham area.

To date, Jellatech has raised $2.9M. According to Michelsen, the startup will start its next raise, a $6M round, in early summer.