Leonardo Dicaprio in The Departed (screen shot)
Leonardo DiCaprio, the Oscar winning movie star, has invested in the Israeli alternative meat producing startup Aleph Farms. This marks Leonardo DiCaprio’s biggest Israeli investment, or deposit as the case may be, since he dated Israeli supermodel Bar Refaeli.
The “Reverent” star’s investment came as part of Aleph Farms’ $105 million Series B funding round the company held in July. Dicaprio also invested in the Dutch cultivated meat start-up Mosa Meat.
Leonardo DiCaprio said of his investment, “One of the most impactful ways to combat the climate crisis is to transform our food system. Mosa Meat and Aleph Farms offer new ways to satisfy the world’s demand for beef, while solving some of the most pressing issues of current industrial beef production. I’m very pleased to join them as an advisor and investor, as they prepare to introduce cultivated beef to consumers.”
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Founded in 2017 and based in Rehovot, Israel, Aleph Farms cultivates steaks directly from the cells of a living animal. It has a platform for the cultivation of whole beef steaks.
Aleph Farms boasts that its cell-grown meat is close to conventional meat thanks to a proprietary 3D platform that uses various types of cells to form complex tissue, ensuring an end product that resembles the taste, texture, and structure of farmed meat.
Aleph Farms Future Mars Base (From Aleph Farms)
Last October, Aleph Farms announced a new initiative to eventually produce its products on Mars. The program is called Aleph Zero and is intended to produce non-GMO cells anywhere and in any environment. In this way the production of its meat alternative will not be affected by the environment nor in any way have an impact on Earth’s environment.
Aleph Farms cofounder and CEO Didier Toubia said, “As a committed environmentalist, we welcome Leonardo DiCaprio to our advisory board and family of top tier investors. Our team is committed to improving the sustainability of our global food systems and we’re thrilled to have Leo share in our vision.”
