Plant-based yogurt investment: Oddlygood raises $28m to fuel international growth

16-Dec-2021 - Last updated on 16-Dec-2021 at 17:15 GMT

Photo Credit: Oddlygood

Related tags Oddlygood Valio plant-based yogurt

Oddlygood, a plant-based dairy and cheese brand spinoff of Valio, raised $28m in its first funding round, fueling its international expansion -- including a US production run of the brand's plant-based yogurts slated for early 2022.

The funding round was led by the private equity division of Helsinki-based Mandatum Asset Management with Valio remaining as the majority shareholder of the Oddlygood brand.

Oddlygood global’s CEO Niko Vuorenmaa said the financing will be used to accelerate its expansion into new and existing markets.

“Oddlygood has developed an excellent platform of delicious plant-based products. With our investment, Oddlygood Global will be able to accelerate the implementation of its growth strategy by developing its means of production, expanding its marketing efforts and hiring new professionals with global growth in mind," Alexander Antas, head of private equity at Mandatum Asset Management, who will be joining Oddlygood's board of directors working directly with the company's management team.

'Consumer taste tests and sales results confirm we’re on the right path'

Sales of Valio's Oddlygood products, which include oat-based yogurts and milk alternatives, have doubled every year since the brand debuted in its home market Finland. In Sweden, Oddlygood has grown 131% since 2018, holding the second largest market share in oat-based beverages in the country outpacing the overall market of oat-based dairy alternatives which has grown by 12%, according to NielsenIQ ScanTrack data.

Oddlygood products are also sold in the UK, Russia, and the Baltic countries.

Earlier this year, Oddlygood started marketing its cheeses to the US foodservice sector with a focus on pizza operators. Last week the company shared its plans to roll out Oddlygood Oat Yogurt products to the US market in early 2022 supported by production in Northern California using oats from Canada.

While many plant-based yogurts fall short on taste, texture, and other key sensory attributes, Oddlygood said that based on consumer testing its oat-based yogurts fortified with pea protein outperform other leading plant-based yogurt brands in the US market.

“Interest in plant-based products is growing exponentially worldwide, which we see in a significant increase in our sales. However, consumers will only change their day-to-day consumption habits if they find dairy alternatives that both taste good and fit their lifestyle,” said Vuorenmaa.

“Consumer taste tests and sales results confirm we’re on the right path.”