Indian FMCG firm Bajo Foods raises $2 million to build its diabetes and protein-based brands

• Mount Judi Ventures led the round that saw participation from S Ramadorai (former VC TCS) and KP Balaraj, founder of KPB Trust (former co-founder of Sequoia Capital India and WestBridge Capital).
  
• Bajo Foods, which began with selling Keto products, claims to provide low-carb food products across India.
  
• With this funding, the FMCG start-up said it expects to grow by 3.5 times in the next 18 months.
  
• The brand also aims to expand its cloud kitchens from 17 now to 35 within 12 months across Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad and Chennai.
  

Bajo Foods Private Limited, the parent company of Indian Keto brand – Lo! Foods, has raised $2 million in a Series A funding round, which is to be deployed in building its two new diabetes and protein-based product brands – DiabeSmart and Protein Chef – in India.

Mount Judi Ventures is the lead anchor in this funding round, its first investment in the FMCG space. S Ramadorai (former VC TCS) and KP Balaraj, founder of KPB Trust (former co-founder of Sequoia Capital India and WestBridge Capital) also participated in the round, the company said in a statement.

With this funding, the FMCG start-up said it expects to grow by 3.5 times in the next 18 months.

“India is referred to as the diabetes capital of the world. The investment will expand the reach to the targeted audience and accelerate our growth, helping us in our vision of positively impacting the health of Indians,” Sudarshan Gangrade, CEO of Bajo Foods said.

DiabeSmart is a brand built to manage diabetes while Protein Chef claims to provide a low-carb high-protein powder that can be added in the batter while cooking.

Bajo Foods, which began with selling Keto products, claims to provide low-carb food products in the form of packaged and fresh foods. A keto diet is known to be high in fat and low in carbohydrates. Founded in 2019, the company also has cloud kitchens supplying fresh foods in four cities- Gurugram, Delhi, Bangalore, and Hyderabad.

The FMCG brand plans to use the funds for brand building of its new product ranges and expanding their channels to offline retail, B2B and hospitals. It also plans to expand its cloud kitchens from 17 currently to around 35 cloud kitchens within 12 months across Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad and Chennai through building franchises.

KP Balaraj said, “The diabetes and protein market segments that Bajo Foods has built products for is extremely large. The company has built clearly differentiated products with high Gross margins structure. With a strong team and founder, we believe Bajo Foods has a long term play in the Indian packaged foods segment."

Bajo Foods says it aims to reduce the incidence of obesity, cardiac, and diabetes-related diseases by 5 million by 2023. Bajo Foods’ mission is to reduce the amount of carbohydrates that India consumes to 50% (from 75-85%). With their new product lines, they intend to serve 100 million Indians by making scientifically-backed and tested low-carb products, the company said in a statement.

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