Fresh on the back of being included in Breakthrough Energy’s prestigious Fellows Program, Terra Oleo have publicly launched and we're excited to share our investment in them.
Based in Singapore and founded by Shen Ming Lee, Boon Uranukul, and Min Hao Wong with backgrounds in science, industry (including deep palm oil links) and strategy - the startup is focused on microbial produced alterantives to palm oil, cocoa butter and more.
The challenges are immense: from rising prices, disrupted supply chains (under growing pressure from climate instability, limited land and labor issues) to high carbon footprint, the current way we product these fats and oils for foods, personal care goods and more is not sustainable.
The team is tackling it through precision fermentation and upcycling low-cost agro-waste into high-performance, tailored lips, without the high footpint associated with conventional agriculture and refining processes.
And to date, Terra Oleo has already signed agreements to test with seven global and regional leaders on oleochemicals, food, personal care, and cosmetics.
We're happy to join fellow investors ADB Ventures, Radical Fund, Elev8 VC in a $US 3.1 million dollar round and excited to see the team progress from lab into pilot staage and beyond.