SK expands sustainable food biz with $7.5 mn US investment

SK Inc., the holding company of South Korea’s No. 2 conglomerate SK Group, has expanded its sustainable food business by investing in a US-based cultured seafood maker, in a bid to enhance future growth.

SK said on Thursday it decided to invest 10 billion won ($7.5 million) in Wildtype, which seeks to commercialize cell-cultivated salmon.

The Korean company also agreed to cooperate on the alternative food business and form a joint venture with local milk products maker Maeil Dairies Co. and US alternative dairy Perfect Day Inc., in which the firm has invested 120 billion won so far. In addition, Netherlands-based Meatless Farm, which SK has injected funds into, recently secured 10 billion won from Korea’s Aju IB Investment.

“The process to overcome climate change can soon be an opportunity to capture future value,” said Kim Moowhan, the head of SK’s Green Investment Center. “We will take the lead in preparing for explosive growth in green industries such as alternative foods.”

PERFECT DAY, MEATLESS FARM, NATURE’S FYND

SK made a foray into the sustainable foods sector with an investment in Perfect Day in 2020 and has since expanded the business by pouring money into other foreign companies such as Meatless Farm and US startup Nature’s Fynd, which develops microbe-based proteins for meat and dairy substitutes.

The investment in Wildtype allowed SK to add cell-cultured foods to its sustainable food business portfolio, which includes existing alternative meat and dairy companies.

Wildtype aims to launch commercial products such as salmon steaks and fillets next year by leveraging its success at achieving textures, tastes and shapes similar to those of real salmon through cell culture techniques.

The company, founded in 2016, has signed supply deals with major US restaurant franchises such as Pokeworks even though the biotech firm has yet to commercialize any foods.

SK is poised to work on the alternative milk protein business in cooperation with Maeil and Perfect Day.

A planned JV among the three companies seeks to import raw materials produced by Perfect Day to Korea, helping Maeil manufacture, distribute and sell completed products in the country.

Write to Seo-Woo Jang at suwu@hankyung.com
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.