Yet another plant-based food company has now received substantial backing.
According to Forbes, the Boston-based (and plant-based) company Biena Snacks has secured
$8 million in Series B financing. The financial backing is led by Maw Investments, which is a
private equity firm created by former Snyder’s-Lance executives such as Peter Michaud. This is
great news for Biena, considering that Maw Investments has vast experience with growing
snack brands like Kettle Chips, Snyder’s of Hanover Pretzels, and Late July Organic Snacks.
Naturally, they will bring their expertise to Biena as well.
However, Maw Investments is not the only entity in support of Biena Snacks. A list of other
investors has also participated in this round, including big names such as Sara Blakely
(founder of Spanx), Darren Rovell (sports journalist), and the serial entrepreneur Jesse Itzler. All of the above have supported Biena’s growth since 2017.
Speaking on his support of Biena and joining its board of directors, Michaud said, “Biena has
been a progressive player in natural snacking since day one, getting ahead of the plant-based
trend with their roasted chickpeas while shaking up the market their reinvented cheese puff.”
Biena is a natural snack company that was founded by Poorvi Patodia in 2012, before the plant-
based industry really took off. Biena currently offers it’s plant-based snacks in 15,000 retail
locations nationwide and is expected to double its yearly revenue in 2019, as reported by the
company.
In addition to it’s roasted chickpea snacks, Biena is now entering into the puffed snack category
with the introduction of its Chickpea Puffs. According to Food Business News, founder Ms.
Patodia says that the product is already well ahead of growth projections. The puffed snack will
be available in Aged White Cheddar, Blazin’ Hot, and Vegan Ranch flavors, and will also be
available in all Whole Foods by next month.
Ms. Patodia says, “Biena is creating the next generation of nutritious, plant-based snacks, and
all of our snacks meet our three standards of goodness – delicious, nutritious and clean.” We
have to agree, and we couldn’t be more excited to see the growth and success unfold.
