Images: sf citi, Daniel Bahmani and Hannah Kaminsky
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed discusses food tech and venture capital at the San Francisco event
Celebrating the recent surge of innovation in plant-based food technology, sf.citi partnered with Facebook and WeWork to host The Future of Food 2.0: Plant-Based Investing. The event included a Meatless Marketplace, showcasing plant-based foods including plant-based industry mainstays JUST and Miyoko’s.
sf.citi Executive Director, Jennifer Stojkovic, moderated a fireside chat with founder and CEO of KBW Ventures, HRH Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, and author and environmental advocate, Suzy Amis Cameron.
The fireside chat was followed by the plant-based investor discussion featuring Dan Altschuler Malek of New Crop Capital, Johnny Ream of Stray Dog Capital, and Prince Khaled, moderated by industry expert Bruce Friedrich of the Good Food Institute. Friedrich highlighted that following launches of Beyond Meat burgers in various popular venues and outlets, demand far outstripped supply.
Prince Khaled stressed that technology plays a major role in the plant-based products space, and noted that there is an ever-growing community of customers looking for meat alternatives. The venture capitalists all agreed that logistics and the supply chain may become an issue as the popularity of plant-based products continues to thrive, noting that while it is promising and a positive issue, this needs to be addressed during scale planning.
Prince Khaled also drew parallels between historically nascent industries and the supply and demand equation; he also said that plant-based proteins are currently the “clear winner” due to the maturity of the space in comparison to cell-based agriculture.
A continuation of its premier Future of Food event in 2018, this year’s edition honed in on the business side of plant-based food tech. With 300 attendees and more than 100 people on the waitlist, The Future of Food has become one of sf.citi’s most popular events.
Related: Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed to participate in Bloomberg Live’s Venture Forward
