SIRE Bioscience gets boost from Venture capital firm
Ontario-based SIRE is focused on the plant-based foods, CBD and supplements industry, with products segmented in sports nutrition, plant fuel, and plant-based protein.
“Eat Beyond is excited to expand our growing portfolio into the supplements space,” said Patrick Morris, CEO Eat Beyond. “SIRE has a wide-ranging portfolio of brands, and we believe that the supplements industry is currently in an exciting evolutionary phase and that consumers are increasingly seeking to improve the quality of what they consume. Supplements are becoming less about solely producing aesthetic results, and more about improving overall health.”
Vancouver's Eat Beyond said they are focused on the global plant-based and alternative food sector, making SIRE a perfect fit.
“The pandemic clearly has accelerated market demand for health, wellness, and fitness especially plant-based proteins and supplements. But the keyword there is ‘accelerated’ because that trend was already growing. The plant-based lifestyle is here to stay. We are intentionally building and expanding a balanced slate of portfolio companies to find value across the full spectrum of plant-based products and companies from all around the world,” explained Morris.
The market for plant-based
While companies initially faced logistical challenges in early 2020, the demand for health and wellness products benefitted the market for dietary supplements.
Additionally, the growing demand for plant-based products is expected to drive the demand for botanical ingredient-based dietary supplements.
According to a report from Research and Markets, the global plant-based protein market size is projected to grow from $10.3 billion in 2020 to $14.5 billion by 2025, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7% during the forecast period.
The report pointed to growing demand in the food industry, increasing demand for pea-based protein and the opportunity to expand in high growth potential markets as some of the major factors driving the growth of the plant-based protein market.
Expansion
SIRE said they plan to use the funds from the investment for working capital, expansion of the Fusion line of supplement products, and expansion capital.
Morris told NutraIngredients-USA that there will likely be a strong effort to expand the market presence of SIRE’s companies. “For example, Fusion Nutrition already has products available in 800 locations in Canada but there are additional opportunities available in large grocery and pharmacy retailers.”
Eat Beyond considers themselves more than just capital, working closely with their portfolio companies to help them navigate business expansion, growth, and development.
Looking ahead, Morris said Eat Beyond will continue to look for early investment opportunities for innovative, creative, and dynamic food tech companies.
SIRE’s acquisitions
SIRE has been busy with the recent acquisition of PlantFuel, Inc. providing a solid portfolio of plant-based products. PlantFuel’s leadership has scaled brands to over $200 million in sales with more than 50,000 distribution points in 120 different countries.
In 2020, SIRE also acquired Fusion Nutrition, a Canadian-based, leading supplement company with national distribution. It holds some of the fastest-growing supplements in Canada and numerous category leaders sold in Canada's top five retailers.
