Celleste Bio is focused on producing high quality and high value cocoa ingredients using cell culture methods, eliminating the dependence on cultivation of cocoa trees. The company will make cocoa ingredients from naturally occurring cocoa cells without genetic modification or manipulation. Celleste was founded by four entrepreneurs bringing a wealth of interdisciplinary experience in the agrifood sector, specifically in the cellular biology field. The cultivation of cocoa worldwide has sustainability challenges, including risks of deforestation and biodiversity loss, threats of unreliable production due to climate change, child labor issues, and higher carbon emissions than other food sources. New technologies that enable the production of cocoa ingredients without these risks can help ensure a more sustainable supply of cocoa ingredients while appealing to consumers’ increasing demand for more environmentally friendly food choices.
Location: Israel, Tel Aviv
Employees: 1-10
Total raised: $4.5M
Founded date: 2022
Funding Rounds 1
| Date | Series | Amount | Investors |
| 09.12.2024 | Seed | $4.5M | - |
Mentions in press and media 8
| Date | Title | Description |
| 09.12.2024 | Celleste Bio Secures $4.5M to Scale Production of Cell-Cultured Cocoa, Mondelēz VC Arm Participates | Cocoa-tech startup Celleste Bio has raised $4.5 million in a seed round to produce its cell-cultured cocoa ingredients for the food industry. The round was led by early-stage investor Supply Change Capital, with the participation of Mondelē... |
| 05.12.2024 | Celleste Bio Raises $4.5M in Seed Funding | Celleste Bio, a Tel Aviv, Israel-based early-stage cocoa-tech company, raised $4.5M in Seed funding. The round was led by Supply Change Capital, with participation from Mondelēz International’s SnackFutures Ventures, Consensus Business Grou... |
| 11.10.2024 | The Future of Chocolate: How California Cultured is Revolutionizing Cocoa Production | In a world where the demand for chocolate is skyrocketing, the supply chain is crumbling. Traditional cocoa farming faces a perfect storm of challenges: climate change, deforestation, and ethical concerns. Enter California Cultured, a start... |
| 10.10.2024 | Sparkalis Invests in plant cell culture startup California Cultured to futureproof cocoa supply chain | California Cultured—a startup producing flavanol-rich cocoa and other botanicals via plant cell culture, has secured a “significant” investment from Sparkalis, the corporate venture arm of bakery ingredients and chocolate giant Puratos. The... |
| 09.08.2024 | Coffee Without Beans, Chocolate Without Cocoa – The Companies Making Plants from Cells (and why we need them) | Plant cell cultivation is revolutionizing the production of various crops by growing plant cells in controlled environments, such as bioreactors, to produce plant-based products. Why do we need plant cell cultivation technology? Demand for ... |
| 31.05.2024 | Meet the founder: Voyage Foods’ Adam Maxwell on futureproofing the chocolate supply chain | Looking at cocoa prices over the last few years, there’s a fair bit of volatility, says Voyage Foods founder Adam Maxwell. But if you normalize the curve, he says, they’re just going in one direction (spoiler alert: it’s up). And in the l... |
| 05.05.2023 | Plant cell culture deep dive: As cracks emerge in botanical supply chain, ‘It’s a huge space to watch’ | Plant cell culture has been around for decades, but it hasn’t set the world on fire… yet. So what is it, and what explains the recent emergence of a flurry of startups seeking to unlock its potential in food and nutraceuticals? A cluster of... |
| - | Celleste Bio | “celleste bio – A Cocoa-Tech Company” |