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§ Private Profile · 901 Gilman St, Suite A, Berkeley, California 94710, US
Plant-based food company offering cheese alternatives for pizzerias, CPG brands, and foodservice, focused on mozzarella and feta.
Based in Berkeley, California, Bettani develops and commercializes plant-based cheese alternatives utilizing a proprietary seed-based protein called Caseed for consumer packaged goods and away-from-home foodservice sectors. The company focuses on manufacturing allergen-free, high-stretch products such as mozzarella and feta that replicate the meltability and texture of traditional dairy through regenerative crop sourcing. Bettani recently secured $6.5 million in an initial Series A funding round led by S2G Investments, with additional financial participation from venture capital firm At One Ventures. To rapidly expand its North American distribution network and broaden its product portfolio, the enterprise executed strategic acquisitions of plant-based food brands Hungry Planet, Numu, and Stockeld Dreamery. Originally operating as an artificial intelligence-driven food technology research firm under the name Climax Foods, the company was founded in 2019 by data scientist Dr. Oliver Zahn.
Bettani has raised $30.5M across 3 funding rounds.
Bettani has raised $30.5M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Bettani has raised $30.5M across 3 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $6.5M Bettani Farms - Series A in October 2025.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 6, 2025 | $6.5M Series A | Sanjeev Krishnan | AT ONE Ventures, Manta RAY Ventures, Toba Capital | Announced |
| Feb 1, 2022 | $16M Seed | — | Darren Liccardo, Conductive Ventures, Trucks Venture Capital | Announced |
| Aug 1, 2020 | $8M Seed | — | Stuart Peterson, ARTIS Ventures, BoxOne Ventures, Social Capital, Unless, TOM CHI, Canaccord Genuity Group, Carrot Capital, Global Founders Capital, Index Ventures, Luminous Ventures, Leah Volger, Prelude Ventures, Sanjeev Krishnan, Valor Siren Ventures | Announced |
Bettani Farms (formerly Climax Foods) is a food technology company developing protein-rich, dairy-free cheeses using its proprietary Caseed ingredient, a seed-based protein derived from regenerative crops that mimics dairy casein's functionality without allergens from dairy, soy, or nuts.[1][2][3][4] It serves B2B partners in retail, food service, and educational sectors, solving key challenges in plant-based cheese like poor meltability, stretch, texture, and low protein (delivering 12-20g per 100g with comparable performance to dairy mozzarella, feta, and others).[1][3][4][5] The company recently rebranded, raised $6.5 million in Series A funding led by S2G Investments, and appointed Sandeep Patel (ex-CFO of Califia Farms) as CEO, signaling strong growth momentum toward commercialization amid rising demand for sustainable, allergen-free proteins.[1][3]
Bettani Farms originated as Climax Foods, a data science tech startup (previously Seattle Food Tech) focused on innovative food tech, before evolving into a consumer-facing food brand emphasizing natural ingredients over lab-like tech appeal.[2][3][6] The idea emerged from addressing plant-based cheese's traction gaps—texture, adhesion, and meltability—despite successes like oat milk, leading to the development of Caseed, a non-GMO, scalable alternative to fermentation-based proteins sourced from regenerative crops.[1][3][4] Pivotal moments include early funding from 14 investors (e.g., Bel Group, Climate Capital since 2021), a 2024 bridge round, and the October 2025 rebrand with $6.5M Series A, new leadership hires like Patel, Rajiv Dave (SVP R&D, ex-Nestle), and Tom Zilligen (SVP Sales, ex-Pacific Foods), marking its shift to scaling cheeses.[1][3][6]
Bettani rides the plant-based dairy disruption wave, targeting cheese's persistent failures where beverages succeeded, fueled by consumer demand for protein-rich (12-20g/100g), allergen-free alternatives amid climate pressures—dairy's high emissions and water use align with sustainable food system shifts.[1][3][4] Timing is ideal post-oat milk's coffee dominance, as regenerative agriculture and precision fermentation alternatives scale, with market forces like allergy prevalence and B2B needs for functional cheeses favoring seed-based innovations over costlier methods.[1][2] It influences the ecosystem by enabling "pizza-grade" dairy-free options, partnering with farmers for supply resilience, and attracting impact VCs like S2G, potentially normalizing high-protein, low-impact cheeses in retail/food service.[1][3]
Bettani is positioned to launch Caseed-based cheeses (mozzarella, feta, etc.) imminently, expanding its portfolio with acquired plant-based brands for broader B2B/retail reach.[1][4] Trends like surging sustainable protein demand, allergy awareness, and regenerative sourcing will propel growth, with its cost/scalability edge challenging dairy dominance.[1][3] Influence may evolve by proving plant cheeses can match dairy functionality, inspiring ecosystem-wide shifts—better with Bettani could redefine dairy-free as the pizza standard.[1][4]
Bettani has raised $30.5M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Bettani's investors include Sanjeev Krishnan, At One Ventures, Manta Ray Ventures, Toba Capital, Darren Liccardo, Conductive Ventures, Trucks Venture Capital, Stuart Peterson, Artis Ventures (AV), BoxOne Ventures, Social Capital, Unless.