Prefer, a Singapore-based start-up making beanless coffee products and ingredients, has struck two new commercial partnerships, which will see it work with two food and drink companies to produce products in Thailand and Australia.
The group said it marked the group’s “first international commercial partnerships”.
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The news was announced alongside the closure of a $4.2m fundraising round, led by At One Ventures and Chancery Hill Capital, with participation from existing investor Forge Ventures.
In a statement, Prefer said it would be working with Japanese food and drink major Ajinomoto’s Thailand arm to “develop sustainable new innovations” in coffee drinks for the Thai market.
Specific details of the future product being produced with Ajinomoto are confidential, according to video from Prefer shared on LinkedIn today (13 August).
Prefer has also granted Australian FMCG company The Coffee Ferm a licence for its proprietary fermentation technology to allow it to manufacture and distribute Prefer coffee products locally.
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By GlobalDataPrefer co-founder Jake Berber told Just Drinks that both these partnerships are long-term. He added that the starting times of both these tie-ups was dependent on “regulatory and manufacturing readiness” but that it was “pushing to get to market as soon as possible”.
Berber founded Prefer in 2022 alongside Ding Jie Tan. The group currently supplies its beanless coffee to FMCG companies in Singapore, including Melvados which has used Prefer’s coffee ingredients in a beanless coffee ice cream product.
Prefer also sells a beanless coffee iced latte RTD product throughout the region, according to its website.
Alongside the news, the group also announced the launch of two new products: soluble coffee and cocoa powders. Prefer plans to sell these throughout the Asia-Pacific region and have already launched them for sampling purposes with food and beverage groups.
“We are targeting large food and beverage companies to integrate our ingredients into their products,” said Berber.
Prefer’s latest investment round brings its total amount raise to date to to $6.2m.
In a statement, Prefer said it plans to “scale its pilot production facility through toll manufacturers in key markets, deepen R&D on cocoa flavour development, and expand global partnerships with a continued focus in Asia”.
Berber said the group would use the investment to scale its coffee production output to 500 tonnes a year through its third-party manufactures based in Asia–Pacific outside Singapore.
Money will also go towards scaling cocoa production at its Singapore pilot facility before shifting to third-party manufacturers to carry out larger volumes.
Berber also told Just Drinks that another funding round is expected within 18–24 months to support further expansion.
The startup’s alternative coffee and cocoa products are made from food manufacturing byproducts such as rice and soy, using a proprietary fermentation and roasting process.
Prefer claims to offer affordable ingredients that “replicate the taste and functionality” of coffee and cocoa, with a reduced carbon footprint.
Prefer said its life cycle analysis shows its coffee has up to 85% lower emissions and is 50% more affordable than traditional Arabica coffee.
