Chickapea, which manufactures organic dried pasta made of chickpeas and yellow peas, has raised CAD$4.25 million CAD in investor funding, the Canadian company announced Monday.
The fundraising round was led by pulse and staple food supplier AGT Foods and brought in a new investor, FCC Capital, the investment arm of Farm Credit Canada. InvestEco, which has invested in the company since 2019, also participated in the fundraise.
The fundraising round follows a Series C funding round in 2021, in which the upstart company out of Collingwood, Ontario, raised CAD$9.3 million co-led by District Ventures Capital, InvestEco Capital and Export Development Canada.
Chickapea said the investment will fuel expansion and meet growing demand in North America.
Its dried pasta includes 24-grams of protein per 100-gram serving. Additionally, its One Pot Meals blend Chickapea’s pasta with creamy, cheesy sauces for what the company describes as “an elevated mac and cheese experience.”
The FCC Capital investment also “brings extensive expertise across Canada’s food and agriculture sector,” Chickapea said.
Chickapea is also strengthening its relationship with AGT Foods by appointing President and CEO Murad Al-Katib to the Chickapea Board of Directors, the company said.
“Al-Katib is a globally recognized leader in the agri-food industry and was named EY’s World Entrepreneur of the Year in 2017,” Chickapea said. “His expertise in building global, vertically-integrated supply chains will be invaluable as Chickapea scales.”
The fundraise comes at a time of rapid growth for Chickapea, which has achieved velocity increases of 25-50% across retail channels in Canada and the US.
“This funding round is a testament to the incredible work our team has done and the strong market performance we’ve achieved,” said Shelby Taylor, CEO and founder of Chickapea. “We’re thrilled to have the support of AGT Foods, FCC and InvestEco. Their partnership will be instrumental as we continue to scale our brand, meeting growing consumer demand, expanding our retail presence and exploring new channels.”
