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Koia ‘positioned to become category leader’ in plant-based beverages with $7.5m investment

By Mary Ellen Shoup

- Last updated on GMT

Koia will use the $7.5m seed investment to expand its distribution and employment team.
Koia will use the $7.5m seed investment to expand its distribution and employment team.

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Koia, a refrigerated RTD plant-based protein beverage company, has secured a $7.5m funding round led by private investment firm KarpReilly and existing investor AccelFoods.

Founded in 2013 in Southern California, Koia plans to use the funding to expand its retail distribution reach and launch a multi-region field marketing campaign. As part of the Series Seed round, Bill Moses, the founder of KeVita (sold to PepsiCo in 2016), will join Koia's board of directors.

With the investment “Koia is well positioned to become a category leader," ​co-founder of KarpReilly, Allan Karp, said.

The company’s proprietary blend of brown rice, hemp, and pea proteins contains 5-to-1 ratio of plant protein to sugar content. Koia products are currently available nationwide in Whole Foods Market and Wegmans.

"It is a testament to how strongly people value simple, natural, transparent products that don't force them to compromise on flavor. We are excited to continue to innovate and expand on our mission to power people through plants,"​ CEO of Koia, Chris Hunter, said.

The plant-based sector (excluding data from Whole Foods Market) hit $5bn in sales with plant-based beverages leading the way topping $4.2bn over the past year and refrigerated products growing at 13.1% for the year, according to SPINS data.

“The consumer appetite for plant-based protein is only beginning,”​ Jordan Gaspar, AccelFoods co-founder and managing partner, added.

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