Tolaram-led funding raises over US$700k for food-tech startup Shandi to produce plant-based chicken in Singapore

SINGAPORE-BASED food-tech startup Shandi has raised more than US$700,000 in a second-seed funding round led by Tolaram Group, one of Africa's largest packaged food conglomerates.

The fresh capital will be used to set up a manufacturing facility in Singapore to commercialise and scale Shandi's proprietary plant-based chicken products, including expanding partnerships in the food sector, said Tolaram in a media statement on Wednesday.

It further said while Shandi has successfully produced chicken analogues in various formats such as pieces, shreds, strips and drumsticks, part of the proceeds would be allocated to further product innovation and development on new textures, formats, and other meat analogues.

Founded in 2019, Shandi aims to launch its range of products to food service and food manufacturers in Q1 next year, with a business-to-consumer retail product to follow.

This round of funding also marks Tolaram's first investment in the alternative protein category.

The Singapore-based group operates 23 manufacturing facilities in Africa and taps its distribution network to bring essential consumer goods to half a billion people in the region.

Other investors in this funding round include Australia-based food-tech accelerator SparkLabs Cultiv8 and Simmarpal Singh, angel investor and former India chief executive officer (CEO) for Louis Dreyfus.

Deepak Singhal, managing director of consumer products at Tolaram, said: "We continue to see strong growth in the alternative protein category, especially when more affordable options become available for emerging markets."

Reena Sharma, founder and CEO at Shandi, said: "This represents a strong validation of our technology and product, and we look forward to working with our investors to move to the next phase and bring our products to market."