International footballer joins £3.6m Seedrs round for plant-based meat firm

A company that specialises in “hyper-realistic” plant-based meat has secured investment from an international footballer in its latest funding round.

THIS has raised £3.6m in its latest campaign on investment platform Seedrs, securing backing from professional footballer Chris Smalling.

Co-founded by Andy Shovel and Pete Sharman after exiting beefburger chain Chosen Bun, THIS aims to mimic meat in taste, texture, appearance and smell but without the ethical or environmental impact, instead using peas and soya beans as the base.

The round, which surpassed its £2m target within 24 hours, saw participation from new investor vegan investment fund Veg Capital.

In addition, returning investors included Backed, Five Seasons Ventures, Idinvest Partners, Seedcamp and Manta Ray Ventures.

This new funding will be used by the firm to create a London-based innovation centre, as well as expand its workforce and invest in the brand’s marketing.

Andy Shovel, co-founder of THIS, commented: “Pete and I can scarcely believe how quickly the Seedrs campaign has been building momentum. I haven’t clicked ‘refresh’ this often since my online dating days.

“We’re truly honoured that so many people have deemed THIS to be worthy of their investment; we’ll keep over-working and ageing abnormally fast, in the hope that we make them a massive return.”

Chris Smalling, professional footballer and co-founder of ForGood, added: “I’ve been really impressed with what Andy & Pete have achieved in such a short time.

“They’ve created a killer brand with amazing products. [I’m] thrilled to be part of their journey.”