Plant-based Rebellyous raises millions to 'rethink the nugget'

Rebellyous, a startup striving to build "a better chicken," has raised at least $20 million in new funding, TechCrunch has learned.

The Seattle-based venture-backed company calls its production technology "the most advanced plant-based meat-making system on the planet."

Rebellyous is aiming to raise up to $30.7 million in total, according to a public regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The report names among its directors previously announced backers YB Choi of Cercano Management, angel investor Owen Gunden and Mike Miller of Liquid 2 Ventures. The filing says at least 55 undisclosed investors participated in the final round, but as usual, the SEC's disclosure leaves us wanting more.

Contacted for comment on the fundraiser, Rebellyous chief of staff Tina Meredith declined to share details about the startup's plan for the money. Still, the company's website lays out the effort to build "the next-generation meat machine," dubbed Mock Two. Rebellyous calls its technology an alternative to factory farming, which it bluntly and rightly describes as "fuckin' disgusting".

The filing comes as some of the biggest names in fake meat struggle to realize their overarching vision to disrupt big meat (which is more popular than ever in the United States, according to somewhat dated reports).< /p>

Impossible Foods may soon lay off 20% of its staff, according to a January 30 Bloomberg report. Similarly, Beyond Meat announced that it would lay off 19% of its staff in October amid weak sales. For early-stage startups like Rebellyous, all eyes will be on profitability, differentiation, and, as always, cost.