Digestive aid drink firm gets venture capital boost
By Joyzelle Davis, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Published August 7, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.
Organic and natural foods pioneer Steve Demos on Wednesday announced a $16 million infusion led by Maveron LLC, a venture capital firm co-founded by Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz.
Demos' NextFoods earlier this year launched GoodBelly, which claims to be the first "fruit-based, dairy-free probiotic product of its kind" in the U.S. The digestive aid drink is sold at 1,500 stores nationwide, including Whole Foods and Publix.
"The advancement of human health and nutrition is our new frontier," Demos said in a statement. "Maveron's partnership with us will help make this vision a reality for the 40 percent of Americans with occasional or chronic digestive issues."
Demos founded WhiteWave in 1977, building the business on tofu and Silk soy milk products. He's credited with making soy milk a mainstream product, and sold WhiteWave to Dean Foods in 2002.
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