Black Sheep Foods
Black Sheep Foods is a San Francisco-based B2B ingredient supplier that produces DualTexture™ Protein, a soy-free textured vegetable protein platform for hybrid and plant-based meat manufacturers serving food processors, private-label suppliers, and prepared meal producers across the U.S. and EU.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Black Sheep Foods does
Black Sheep Foods, founded in 2019 and headquartered in San Francisco with an EU subsidiary in Amsterdam (Black Sheep Foods B.V.), develops and supplies DualTexture™ Protein, a next-generation soy-free textured vegetable protein (TVP) platform designed for hybrid and plant-based meat applications. The platform enables 30–50% inclusion in hybrid formats without compromising eating quality, compared to 10–15% for conventional TVP, and supports formats including mince, pulled, cubed, sausage, and ready meals, with documented fat binding, juice retention, and flavor carry performance. Production is conducted in IFS- and BRC-certified facilities.
The company operates as a B2B ingredient supplier, selling its protein substrate to food manufacturers, meat processors, private-label suppliers, prepared meal producers, caterers, foodservice manufacturers, retailers, and plant-based brands for use in private-label, white-label, hybrid, and fully plant-based product development. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales supplemented by a website contact form ("Talk to Our Team") and a minimal organic social presence on LinkedIn and Instagram. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed; commercial relationships are structured as multi-year contracts tailored to formulation and volume requirements.
Black Sheep Foods has raised approximately $18.05M across a 2019 pre-seed/grant ($200K from Big Idea Ventures), a January 2022 seed round ($5.25M), and a December 2022 Series A ($12.3M, led by Unovis Asset Management with Bessemer Venture Partners, AgFunder, KBW Ventures, Sprint Vc, and Tet Ventures participating). The Series A was earmarked to scale production and significantly increase monthly output in early 2023. The company employs 1–10 people and currently has no disclosed revenue or named commercial customers.
Black Sheep Foods firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Black Sheep Foods
- Legal name
- Black Sheep Foods, Inc.
- Website
- https://blacksheepfoods.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Black Sheep Foods is a San Francisco-based B2B ingredient supplier that produces DualTexture™ Protein, a soy-free textured vegetable protein platform for hybrid and plant-based meat manufacturers serving food processors, private-label suppliers, and prepared meal producers across the U.S. and EU.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Black Sheep Foods industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Plant-Based Protein Ingredients
- NAICS
- Food Manufacturing (311)
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) & Protein Texturates Manufacturing (AFAKAGAE)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Plant-Based Protein Ingredient Producers (Isolates, Concentrates, Texturates) (AFANAKAB)
Keywords
Where Black Sheep Foods is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Black Sheep Foods business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- B2B Ingredient Sales: Black Sheep Foods sells its DualTexture™ Protein ingredient platform to food manufacturers, meat processors, private-label suppliers, and prepared meal producers. Revenue is generated through ingredient sales for use in hybrid and plant-based meat products. The company operates on a B2B model, supplying protein substrates for private-label and white-label product manufacturing.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | B2B ingredient sales with custom pricing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Black Sheep Foods product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Black Sheep Foods develops and supplies DualTexture™ Protein, a next-generation textured vegetable protein (TVP) platform designed for hybrid and plant-based meat manufacturers. The soy-free ingredient system enables 30–50% inclusion in hybrid formats (versus 10–15% for conventional TVP) and supports applications including mince, pulled, cubed, sausage, ready meals, and prepared foods. The company sells this ingredient platform directly to food manufacturers, meat processors, private-label suppliers, prepared meal producers, caterers, and foodservice manufacturers for use in private-label and white-label products.
Product overview
Black Sheep Foods develops protein substrates for the next generation of eating. The company's primary offering is the DualTexture™ Protein platform—a next-generation TVP (textured vegetable protein) system designed for hybrid and plant-based meat manufacturers. Founded in 2019 and headquartered in San Francisco with EU operations in Amsterdam, the company works behind the scenes with food manufacturers, meat processors, retailers, and plant-based brands to create private-label and white-label hybrid and plant-based products. The DualTexture™ Protein platform helps partners improve taste, texture, and economics while reducing animal protein using existing manufacturing infrastructure.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- DualTexture™ Protein A next-generation textured vegetable protein (TVP) platform for hybrid and plant-based meat applications. Designed for food manufacturers, meat processors, private-label suppliers, retailers, foodservice manufacturers, caterers, and prepared meal producers who require strong bite, fat binding, juice retention, flavor carry, and improved economics. Supports 30–50% inclusion in hybrid formats without compromising eating quality, is soy-free, high in protein, and produced in IFS/BRC-certified facilities for use across mince, pulled, cubed, sausage, ready meals, and other formats.
Quantifiable outcome
- 30-50% inclusion rate in hybrid formats (vs 10-15% for conventional TVP)
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Black Sheep Foods
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Black Sheep Foods technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Black Sheep Foods partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Black Sheep Foods competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Beyond Meat: Leading plant-based meat brand selling finished retail products rather than ingredients. Not a direct ingredient competitor, but a potential Black Sheep customer for plant-based protein substrates, and a category barometer for plant-based meat demand.
- International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): Large ingredients conglomerate (including former DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences) with extensive plant-protein and texture systems sold to food manufacturers. Broader incumbent offering overlapping capabilities as part of a much wider ingredient portfolio.
- Impossible Foods: Major plant-based meat brand with proprietary technology (heme/soy leghemoglobin). While they use their own proprietary platform rather than third-party TVP, they represent a comparable plant-based meat customer/adjacent player in Black Sheep's target ecosystem.
Direct peers
- Ingredion: Major plant-based ingredient supplier with a dedicated plant-protein business (including PURIS pea protein and textured offerings) serving food manufacturers in meat extension and plant-based applications. Direct B2B peer with established food-industry relationships.
- Kerry Group: Global taste and nutrition ingredient supplier serving food manufacturers with plant-based protein systems and meat extension solutions. Direct B2B peer with broad manufacturer relationships and significant R&D scale.
- Roquette: World leader in pea protein and textured plant-based protein ingredients (including its NUTRALYS textured pea protein line) sold to food manufacturers for hybrid and plant-based applications. Roquette is one of Black Sheep's closest direct competitors in the B2B textured-protein ingredient category.
- ADM (Archer Daniels Midland): Global food ingredient major with an alternative proteins platform (including textured soy and pea proteins via its Plant Protein Innovation Center) supplying food manufacturers. Direct B2B peer with comparable customer segments, much larger scale, and extensive ingredient portfolio.
- Cargill: Global agribusiness giant with a sizable plant-based and alternative protein ingredients portfolio (including textured proteins and pea protein isolates) sold B2B to food manufacturers. Directly competes with Black Sheep for the same enterprise manufacturer customer base and has dramatically larger R&D, distribution, and price-flexibility.
Emerging players
- Meati Foods: Emerging alternative protein company producing mycelium-based whole-cut and ground products for retail and foodservice. Comparable as a venture-backed alt-protein startup pursuing similar hybrid/plant-based meat end-markets, though with a fundamentally different protein source.
- Gathered Foods (Good Catch): Plant-based seafood brand using proprietary textured protein technology. Comparable as an emerging alt-protein startup with proprietary protein platform pursuing similar B2B/B2C hybrid-and-plant-based end-markets with similar venture backing profile.
Market position
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Black Sheep Foods social profiles
Digital presenceBlack Sheep Foods compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Black Sheep Foods financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Black Sheep Foods leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Black Sheep Foods subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Black Sheep Foods funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors11 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Black Sheep Foods M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Black Sheep Foods
What does Black Sheep Foods do?
Black Sheep Foods develops and supplies DualTexture™ Protein, a next-generation textured vegetable protein (TVP) platform designed for hybrid and plant-based meat manufacturers. The soy-free ingredient system enables 30–50% inclusion in hybrid formats (versus 10–15% for conventional TVP) and supports applications including mince, pulled, cubed, sausage, ready meals, and prepared foods. The company sells this ingredient platform directly to food manufacturers, meat processors, private-label suppliers, prepared meal producers, caterers, and foodservice manufacturers for use in private-label and white-label products.
Is Black Sheep Foods a public or private company?
Black Sheep Foods is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Black Sheep Foods founded?
Black Sheep Foods was founded in 2019. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Black Sheep Foods based?
Black Sheep Foods is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Black Sheep Foods make money?
One revenue line is on record: B2B Ingredient Sales.
Who are Black Sheep Foods's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Beyond Meat, International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) and Impossible Foods. Direct peers are Ingredion, Kerry Group, Roquette, ADM (Archer Daniels Midland) and Cargill. Emerging players are Meati Foods and Gathered Foods (Good Catch).
Does Black Sheep Foods have an API?
No public API is recorded for Black Sheep Foods.
What industry is Black Sheep Foods in?
Black Sheep Foods's product category is Plant-Based Protein Ingredients. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAKAGAE, Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP) & Protein Texturates Manufacturing, with a secondary code of AFANAKAB, Plant-Based Protein Ingredient Producers (Isolates, Concentrates, Texturates). Its NAICS code is 311 and its SIC code is 2090.