Unilever has been named in a group of investors that have backed US meal-kit business Sun Basket in its latest funding round.
Sun Basket said yesterday (21 May) it had raised US$30m in Series E funding, a round that included the FMCG giant’s Unilever Ventures division.
Unilever first invested in Sun Basket in 2017, when it led US$9.2m of investment in the San Francisco-based business.
At the time of writing, the Knorr and Magnum maker had not responded to a request for further details on how much it has invested in the latest round, nor on why the company was again backing Sun Basket.
In a statement, Sun Basket said the $30m of funding, which was led by US venture-capital firm PivotNorth Capital, brought the overall amount invested in the business to $125m.
Sun Basket CEO Adam Zbar said the company was “thrilled to have the strong support of our investors, who share our vision for building the leading personalized healthy eating platform”.
He added: “Food is a $1trn market ripe for online disruption, and Sun Basket will continue to innovate, focusing on our customers’ top three needs: health, ease, and personalisation.”
To try to further grow sales, Sun Basket plans to launch more products and look for “strategic partnerships that drive user acquisition and brand awareness”, the company said. Sales numbers were not disclosed.
Tim Connors, the founder of PivotNorth Capital, said: “With the incredibly large and influential millennial population increasingly prioritising healthy meals and snacks, we believe they have the ability to build a category-defining company that has huge growth potential and is profitable.”
