Avaana Capital leads 1.2 million dollars seed round in High Time Foods
Bengaluru, May 8 (UNI) Avaana Capital, a venture capital fund backing deep-tech and frontier innovation, has led a USD 1.2 million seed round in High Time Foods, a food-tech startup offering cost-effective, shelf-stable plant-based protein solutions. Existing investors also participated in the round.
The funding coincides with High Time Foods' official launch in India, where it aims to address the country's protein gap by building a climate-resilient, non-refrigerated, and versatile protein product line catering primarily to the institutional food sector.
The Bengaluru-based startup had earlier secured a distribution deal with US-based Sysco, one of the world's largest foodservice providers, which it described as a significant global validation of its product innovation and operational efficiency.
"With Avaana Capital backing us, my co-founder Damian and I are doubling down on our mission to deliver delicious and versatile plant-based protein to our B2B partners across India and beyond,' said Aakash Shah, Co-Founder and CEO, High Time Foods.
"We're launching at a very affordable price point, and as we scale, we aim to be cheaper than conventional protein sources, including meat."
The firm's offerings, designed for restaurants, hotels, caterers, institutions, and manufacturers, are intended to function as adaptable ingredients in diverse preparations, including Indian staples like samosas and kebabs. The company's early India operations include a partnership with Vasantha Bhavan, a 65-year-old restaurant chain with presence across Tamil Nadu and abroad.
According to Avaana Capital's Investment Director Shruti Srivastava, 'High Time Foods is tackling one of the most urgent gaps in food systems today—affordable, scalable protein. Their shelf-stable innovation is built for real-world conditions, especially in markets where infrastructure can be a challenge.'
Founded by MBA classmates Aakash Shah and Damian Felchlin, the company combines experience in foodservice, logistics, and international trade.
Shah has previously co-founded a cloud kitchen venture and held leadership positions at Zomato, while Felchlin served as a Swiss Trade Commissioner in the United States.
The fresh capital will be deployed for product development, hiring across R\\\\\\\\&D, culinary innovation and business operations, and expanding partnerships across India, the US, and emerging markets in the Global South. UNI BDN SSP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Economic Times
43 minutes ago
- Economic Times
HCL Tech shares in focus after partnership with US energy firm Just Energy
Shares of HCL Technologies will be in focus on Friday after the IT major announced a partnership with US-based energy supply company Just Energy to enhance the latter's operations and customer experience. ADVERTISEMENT Under the agreement, HCLTech will deliver digital process outsourcing solutions powered by its generative AI platform to streamline functions across IT, finance, analytics, customer care, sales, and renewals, the company said in a statement. This marks HCLTech's second major deal in the energy sector this week. On Monday, the Noida-based software exporter announced a collaboration with European energy giant to provide cloud and network management services. 'By combining our expertise in GenAI and digital process outsourcing, HCLTech will contribute significantly to Just Energy's innovation strategy and customer satisfaction,' said Ajay Bahl, Chief Growth Officer – Americas, Manufacturing and Allied Industries at company will also deploy its business process optimisation tools and a role-specific, single-user interface platform to improve workforce collaboration and operational workflows at Just Energy.'We are confident that HCLTech's proven expertise and commitment to service excellence will help us achieve our key business objectives related to operational efficiency and service improvements,' said Scott Fordham, Chief Operating Officer at Just Energy. ADVERTISEMENT Also Read: 8 debt-free penny stocks that surged 110-300% in the last 1 year. Do you own any? According to Trendlyne data, the average target price for HCLTech is Rs 1,668, indicating a potential downside of around 3% from current levels. Among the 44 analysts tracking the stock, the consensus rating is 'Hold'. ADVERTISEMENT HCLTech shares closed marginally lower by 0.1% at Rs 1,713.90 on the BSE in Thursday's trade. While the stock has gained 11% over the past three months, it remains down over 10% year-to-date. (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times) ADVERTISEMENT (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)
Mint
44 minutes ago
- Mint
Oswal Pumps Share Price Live: GMP, experts hint a decent debut of shares in stock market today; check key detail
Oswal Pumps Share Price Live: Oswal Pumps shares are scheduled to debut in the Indian stock market today, June 20. The initial public offering for shares began on June 13 and ended on June 17. Oswal Pumps IPO allotment was finalised on Wednesday, June 18. A notice on the BSE indicated that trading members of the exchange are hereby notified that starting on Friday, June 20, 2025, the equity shares of Oswal Pumps Limited will be listed and available for trading on the Exchange as part of the 'B' Group of Securities. Oswal Pumps IPO price band was fixed in the range of ₹ 584 to ₹ 614 per equity share of the face value of Re 1. Oswal Pumps IPO lot size was 24 equity shares and in multiples of 24 equity shares thereafter. Oswal Pumps IPO subscription status was 34.42 times by the end of the bidding period. The allocation for Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs) saw a subscription rate of 88.08 times, while the non-institutional investors' category was subscribed 36.70 times. Retail Individual Investors (RIIs) experienced a subscription rate of 3.60 times. Half of the total issue size has been allocated for qualified institutional buyers, 35% for retail investors, and the remaining 15% for non-institutional buyers. Oswal Pumps started its journey in 2003, initially producing low-speed monoblock pumps, and has since broadened its scope to include the production of grid-connected submersible pumps and electric motors. The company produces both solar-powered and grid-connected submersible and monoblock pumps, as well as electric motors, which include induction and submersible varieties, in addition to solar modules, all marketed under the 'Oswal' brand. Oswal Pumps IPO GMP today is +41. This indicates Oswal Pumps share price was trading at a premium of ₹ 41 in the grey market, according to Considering the upper end of the IPO price band and the current premium in the grey market, the estimated listing price of Oswal Pumps share price is indicated at ₹ 655 apiece, which is 6.68% higher than the IPO price of ₹ 614. 'Grey market premium' indicates investors' readiness to pay more than the issue price. Disclaimer: The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Stocks struggle, oil up for 3rd week as Trump weighs US action on Iran
Asian share markets faced uncertainty amid worries of a possible US-Iran conflict. Oil prices are likely to increase due to the escalating Israel-Iran tensions. Israel bombed nuclear targets in Iran. Donald Trump will decide on US involvement in the next two weeks. Brent crude oil fell but is set for a weekly gain. Japan's core inflation rose. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Share markets in Asia struggled for direction on Friday as fears of a potential U.S. attack on Iran hung over markets, while oil prices were poised to rise for a third straight week on the escalating Israel-Iran Israel bombed nuclear targets in Iran, and Iran fired missiles and drones at Israel as a week-old air war intensified with no sign yet of an exit strategy from either White House said President Donald Trump will decide in the next two weeks whether the U.S. will get involved in the Israel-Iran war. The U.S. President is facing uproar from some of his MAGA base over a possible strike on fell 2% on Friday to $77.22 per barrel, but is still headed for a strong weekly gain of 4%, following a 12% surge the previous week."The 'two-week deadline' is a tactic Trump has used in other key decisions, including those involving Russia and Ukraine, and tariffs," said Tony Sycamore, analyst at IG."Often, these deadlines expire without concrete action, (similar to TACO), and there is certainly a risk of this happening again, given the complexities of the situation."Still, a cautious mood prevailed in markets with Nasdaq futures and S&P 500 futures both 0.3% lower in Asia. U.S. markets were closed for the Juneteenth holiday, offering little direction for MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.1% but was set for a weekly drop of 1%. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.2%.China's blue chips rose 0.3%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.5%, after the central bank held the benchmark lending rates steady as widely the currency markets, the dollar was on the back foot again, slipping 0.2% to 145.17 yen after data showed Japan's core inflation hit a two-year high in May, which kept pressure on the Bank of Japan to resume interest rate however, see little prospects of a rate hike from the BOJ until December this year, which is a little over 50% priced U.S. bond market, which was also closed on Thursday, started trading in Asian hours on a subdued note. Ten-year Treasury bond yield was flat at 4.389%, while two-year yields slipped 2 basis points to 3.925%.Overnight, the Swiss National Bank cut rates to zero and did not rule out going negative, while the Bank of England held policy steady but saw the need for further easing and Norway's central bank surprised everyone and cut rates for the first time since prices eased 0.2% to $3,363 an ounce, but were set for a weekly loss of 2%.
