The Saudi venture capital (VC) firm KBW Ventures has participated in the $3.2 million seed funding round for TurtleTree Labs, a Singapore-based biotech start-up.

In January, the Saudi VC, founded and led by Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud, had participated in the pre-seed funding round for the start-up, which is developing a new technology to produce milk from animal cells with no animal required.

Other investors taking part in the TurtleTree Labs seed round are Green Monday Ventures, CPT Capital, Artesian, and New Luna Ventures.

“Now more than ever, people are waking up to the benefits of food technology and the massive positive implications of innovations in cellular agriculture,” said Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud.

“TurtleTree Labs’ goal of creating milk from animal cells provides a novel solution towards sustainable dairy production globally and would also help to strengthen Singapore’s long-term food diversification efforts,” added Bernice Tay, Director, Food Manufacturing Division, Enterprise Singapore.

The biotechnology company, which is supported by the Singapore government, is focusing is on high value human breast milk followed by cow milk, according to its press statement.

(Writing by Anoop Menon, editing by Seban Scaria)