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Foreverland is an Italian food ingredient company that develops sustainable, cocoa-free alternatives for the chocolate industry. Leveraging carob and other underutilized crops, the company engineers novel ingredients such as "Choruba" to replicate the taste and texture of traditional cocoa, providing manufacturers with an ethical and reliable substitute. This approach addresses challenges in conventional cocoa supply chains by offering a resilient and environmentally conscious option.
Founded in 2022, Foreverland was established by Massimo Brochetta, Riccardo Bottiroli, Massimo Sabatini, and Giuseppe D'Alessandro. Their founding insight centered on transforming global food systems by enhancing sustainability, reliability, and fairness in ingredient sourcing. This led them to develop innovative alternatives to conventional raw materials, seeking to reshape the industry's reliance on often problematic traditional sources.
The company targets food manufacturers actively seeking to diversify their ingredient base and cater to growing consumer preferences for responsibly produced goods. Foreverland's vision is to pioneer a new standard for ingredient development, ensuring delicious food products align intrinsically with positive environmental and social impact. They aim to contribute to more resilient and equitable global food systems.
Foreverland has raised $11.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Foreverland has raised $11.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Foreverland has raised $11.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Foreverland's investors include Grey Silo Ventures.
Foreverland is an Italian foodtech startup founded in 2023 that develops Choruba, a patented cocoa-free chocolate alternative made from carob and other resilient Mediterranean crops like pumpkin seeds and chickpeas.[1][2][3][4][5] It serves food industry businesses, such as manufacturers and retailers, by providing a drop-in replacement ingredient in drops or liquid form that matches traditional chocolate's taste and texture without requiring equipment changes, solving cocoa supply chain vulnerabilities like deforestation, child labor, climate-driven shortages, and high emissions.[1][3][4][5] With €3.4 million raised in a 2024 seed round from investors including Grey Silo Ventures, Eatable Adventures, and Exor Ventures, Foreverland is scaling via a new Puglia production facility operational since early 2025, targeting over 500 tonnes of annual output, European expansion, new products like allergen-free creams and vegan variants, and retail partnerships such as Choruba Protein Bites with Small Giants.[1][2][5][6] Early wins include the 2023 PNI innovation award, 2024 Food Tech World Cup, and Foodseed accelerator participation, signaling strong growth momentum in sustainable foodtech.[2][4]
Foreverland was founded in 2023 in Bari, Italy (with a Milan office), by Massimo Sabatini (CEO), Riccardo Bottiroli (CTO, PhD food scientist collaborating with Wageningen University), Giuseppe D’Alessandro, and Massimo Brochetta, who left careers in multinationals like oil and gas to address the food industry's CO2 emissions and cocoa's unsustainability.[1][2][3][4] The idea emerged from revitalizing "forgotten" crops like carob—once dismissed as the "chocolate of the poor"—sourced from Sicily and Mediterranean regions, transforming waste-like materials into a disruptive alternative via proprietary fermentation and processing tech.[2][3][4] Pivotal early moments included joining the CDP-backed Foodseed accelerator, winning the 2023 PNI industrial innovation prize, and clinching the 2024 Food Tech World Cup in Lausanne, which built traction leading to the seed funding and product rebrand from Freecao to Choruba, protected by two patents.[1][2][4]
Foreverland rides the alt-chocolate wave amid cocoa crises—production down in Ghana/Côte d'Ivoire due to weather, diseases, and depletion—positioning carob as a resilient, local alternative that boosts Mediterranean farmers and biodiversity.[1][3] Timing aligns with rising demand for ethical indulgence: consumers want chocolate-like products without ethical/environmental baggage, amplified by EU sustainability regs and foodtech investment in upcycled ingredients.[3][4] Market tailwinds include climate instability hitting cocoa (water/carbon-intensive) and growth in vegan/allergen-free foods; Foreverland influences the ecosystem by enabling manufacturers to "future-proof" supply chains, setting standards for transparent, scalable alt-proteins/ingredients beyond sustainability to social impact.[2][3][5]
Foreverland transitions from R&D to industrial scale with its Puglia plant enabling client trials, mainstream products, and demand-matching at competitive prices.[5][6] Next steps include European rollout, new formulations (e.g., vegan milk/white chocolate, spreadable creams), deeper R&D for allergen-free innovations, and more B2B/retail tie-ups.[1][2][3] Trends like cocoa volatility, precision-local sourcing, and clean-label indulgence will propel growth, potentially evolving Foreverland into an alt-chocolate leader reshaping confectionery for a sustainable era—democratizing premium taste without planetary compromise.[3][4]
Foreverland has raised $11.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $7.0M Foreverland Other Equity in March 2026.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1, 2026 | $7.0M Foreverland Other Equity | ||
| Sep 1, 2024 | $4.0M Seed | Grey Silo Ventures |