UK startup secures funding to develop its hemp marketplace

The UK-based startup, which specializes in sustainable industrial hemp products, has secured a pre-seed funding round of £1 million ($1.28M/€1.2M) to support the development of its business-to-business (B2B) marketplace.

The company aims to centralize access to industrial hemp ingredients and products, which would benefit the pet food and animal feed sectors.

“We are using the new funding round to hire a new team member for operational efficiency and to streamline delivery of product to our customers through software development,” Chief Operating & Technology Officer Suneet Shivaprasad tells GlobalPETS.

Located in Essex, Rare Earth expects that this streamlined access to bio-based ingredients will help companies reduce Scope-3 emissions and support net-zero goals.

Pet food portfolio

Rare Earth Global supplies hemp protein powder and hemp-based flakes and pellets for pet food manufacturing and plans to process and deliver over 500 tons of hemp seed this year.

It aims to scale its presence in premium pet food segments by prioritizing high-quality, highly palatable, carbon-conscious ingredients.

Given the varied market regulations around cannabidiol (CBD) products, Rare Earth clarifies that it avoids the supply of ingredients that contain the compound.

Government support and increased production

Rare Earth Global recently received 2 grants from the UK government, one for hemp seed research and the second for hemp stalk research.

The company confirms that they also received additional grants from European and Asian governments for a full plant study and an incentive for expansion.