Aberdeen based EBar is raising a glass after closing a £670,000 equity round that will accelerate the roll-out of their self-service drinks dispensing technology to busy venues across the UK & Europe. The funding was led by the Seedrs crowdfunding platform and Irish events entrepreneur Robert O’Dowd, with follow on investments from Jenson Funding Partners, Equity Gap and Gabriel Investment Syndicate.

London-based startup, BEPPS Snacks, has raised £400,000 investment from early-stage venture capital investors, Ascension Ventures, 

Arborea – which is industrialising photosynthesis to expand the world’s food supply –  has completed a funding round led by BGF, the UK & Ireland’s most active investor, alongside Rubio Impact Ventures and Volta Circle.

Arborea is a technology business that has developed a breakthrough cultivation platform for photosynthetic microorganisms for use as food ingredients and proteins. It was founded by CEO Julian Melchiorri in 2015 following his research at Imperial College London. 

Distill Ventures is committed to increasing diversity within the drinks industry through a range of global initiatives, 

BGF, the UK & Ireland’s most active growth capital investor, has completed a cornerstone investment in The Artisanal Spirits Company plc, a specialist retailer of premium single cask, single malt Scotch whisky and other spirits, as part of its admission to trading on AIM. The admission took place on 4 June 2021.

Inverleith LLP, a Scottish-based consumer brands investor, is celebrating the listing on AIM of its portfolio company, The Artisanal Spirits Company which has the largest collection of single malt single cask whiskies in the world, as well as a complementary range of premium spirits.

SENTZ, a new range of naturally fruitful British hard seltzers for people who want to live life guilt-free, has received investment from Henley Business Angels (HBA) members and guest investors.

Pembroke VCT, the venture capital trust focused on building the businesses of tomorrow, has exited its investment in Plenish, the award-winning plant-based milks and plant-powered juice brand. The innovative beverage brand, which was one of Pembroke VCT’s earliest investments, has been acquired by Britvic to boost its plant-based drinks portfolio and cater to the growing demand for healthy and nutritious juices.

Nanotechnology business Figura Analytics has raised £180,000 seed funding from private investors and the UK’s leading early stage investor SFC Capital. 

The company was spun out of Loughborough University in January 2021, backed by an Innovate UK grant, to develop its rapid testing technology platform aimed at helping the drinks industry to improve quality and consistency of ingredients and finished product.  Figura’s nanopore technology uses microfluidics, sensors and software algorithms, which enables them to recognise and characterize any particle suspended in a solution. 

Jenson Funding Partners have completed an investment in The Neighbourhood Kitchen who are responsible for launching and operating profitable, delivery-only kitchens across the UK.

Poke House, a leading fast casual poke brand in Europe, has announced the acquisition of London-based restaurant chain Ahi Poké from BVC Group, marking its expansion in the United Kingdom.

Feel, the UK-based digital health company, is on a mission to clean up the ‘dirty’ world of nutritional supplements and, following an exceptional first year of growth, the  producer of the world’s cleanest, highest-quality supplements, has closed a £4.5million investment, led by Fuel Ventures and includes TMT Investments, Sova VC, Richard Longhurst (founder of LoveHoney.com) and Igor Ryabenkiy (founder and GP of Altair Capital).