Nice Rice has closed a six-figure investment round to help with its mission to champion environmentally friendly products and grow the sustainable rice category in the UK.
The sustainably farmed rice brand secured a significant contribution from VC firm Anotherway Ventures as part of the £560k round.
Nice Rice said the backing would help to propel the disruptor toward its ambitious goals, including a commitment to providing shoppers with “a clear, sustainable choice in the rice category”.
Fergus O’Sullivan launched the business in 2023, with the brand making its retail debut in Waitrose in May.
“It’s a little-known fact that conventionally farmed rice has an enormous environmental impact and a shocking sustainability record,” O’Sullivan said.
“After beef, rice is responsible for the highest global greenhouse gas emissions in all of food production. We founded Nice Rice to build a sustainable future for the world’s most-eaten food and this new investment marks a significant step in getting us towards that goal.”
Nice Rice exclusively sources rice from a farmer group in India that follows a UN and IPCC-endorsed sustainable farming method and also pays its farmers a premium for meeting high sustainability standards.
Since launching, Nice Rice estimated its consumers had helped save 23 tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions and more than 63 million litres of water thanks to the farming practice of alternate wetting and drying used to grow its rice.
Anotherway Ventures managing partner Nick Clarke added: “We are proud to be investing in Nice Rice and we are looking forward to helping Fergus and the team continue building a category-defining brand. We’re excited by the mission of providing more sustainable rice to the world and believe Nice Rice is perfectly poised to lead this rice revolution.”
Nice Rice’s ready-to-heat pouch range is available at Waitrose and Ocado. It also sells dry rice cartons on its website.
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