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Ripple closes $60M investment round, targets global expansion

Animal-free, pea-protein-based dairy maker Ripple Foods raised $60 million in a Series E funding round led by Rage Capital, Ajax Strategies, and S2G Ventures, with backing from OurCrowd, GV, Prelude Ventures, Euclidean, Fall Line Capital, and Tao Capital Partners.

The addition of these latest funds brings Ripple Foods’ funds to more than $246.3 million, according to Crunchbase. In a statement, the company said that it will use this capital to increase innovation as well as expand into new product categories and markets globally.

“There’s a tremendous growth runway domestically, but we also see an enormous opportunity outside of the United States where there is the need and preference for dairy-free products,” Ripple Foods CEO Laura Flanagan said in a statement.

Plant-based dairy is growing enormously. In the U.S., plant-based dairy dollar sales grew 55% over the past two years, reaching $1.9 billion in 2020, according to SPINS data cited by the Good Food Institute. Globally, the growth statistics are also notable. According to Bloomberg Intelligence, the category has the potential to reach $62 billion by 2030, up from $23 billion in 2020, which would mean that plant-based dairy would comprise 10% of the total dairy market.

These growth statistics are particularly enticing for investors looking at Ripple thanks to the company's position in the market. According to Flanagan, Ripple’s growth is outpacing the category by 3 times.

“There are very few products in the plant-based arena that offer consumers a no-compromise proposition like Ripple: great taste, great nutrition and great for the environment,” Gabriel Ruimy, Rage Capital’s Managing Partner said in a statement. “We look forward to helping Ripple enter new markets as they become the go-to alternative to dairy for consumers everywhere.”

With its established market share and a substantial demand worldwide for alternative dairy products, it is no surprise that Ripple is looking outside of its North American territory to expand. One potential place for the company's expansion to begin is in China. Last year, one of the Asian country’s largest B2B food companies, Multizen made an investment in Ripple Foods.

While its future plans for expansion are still under development, Ripple is continuing to innovate within its active markets in the U.S. and Canada. Recently, the brand launched a high-protein, low-sugar kids line that has better-for-you qualities including prebiotic fiber, choline, and DHA for brain health. When it launched the line, Ripple said these alternative options were the same or better than conventional dairy.