ONCE Ventures Launches in North America to Nurture CPG Brands for Better Health Worldwide

LOS ANGELES, May 19, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Otsuka Nutraceutical Emerging Ventures ("ONCE Ventures") today announces it is bringing the expertise and resources from one of the world's preeminent health and wellness companies to North America. The new venture fund aims to empower the visionaries and innovators who are revolutionizing the rapidly expanding nutraceuticals market. 

ONCE Ventures is the North American nutraceuticals venture capital arm of Otsuka, a global leader in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products with an impressive track record of operating and supporting leading brands in health and wellness. That record includes POCARI SWEAT^®, a leader in the Asian market for electrolyte replenishment beverages; Nature Made, the leading broadline vitamins and supplements brand in the U.S.; and Daiya, the leading brand in delicious plant-based and dairy-free foods.

The new venture fund is committed to partnering with brands that are developing innovative and differentiated products that deliver better health outcomes. ONCE Ventures will invest in active nutrition, supplements, plant-based foods, and healthy beverages brands across North America looking for Series A or B financing.

"We are witnessing an exciting level of innovation in the North American nutraceuticals market right now," said Les Hine, CEO of ONCE Ventures. "We want to encourage and nurture that entrepreneurial spirit by offering young companies and their leaders access to Otsuka's technical expertise, market knowledge and capital. Our goal is to help emerging brands achieve their full potential and improve the health and lives of North American consumers."

Backed by world-class operations that have produced genuinely innovative brands, ONCE Ventures blends its strategic know-how, global contacts, and brand-building experience to help businesses grow. The venture fund will help write the next chapter in Otsuka's proud 100-year story, by building a healthier world through ground-breaking creativity and innovation and continuing its legacy of successfully partnering with other companies to their mutual benefit.

ONCE Ventures recognizes the importance of building brands in an authentic and sustainable way. The venture capital fund is committed to making investments that will give the founders of these brands the resources and backing they need to reach their fullest potential, while leveraging Otsuka's guidance, expertise, and capabilities to put them on a path towards sustainable long-term success.

To learn more about ONCE Ventures, please visit onceventures.com or contact [email protected].

About Otsuka Pharmaceutical Company, Ltd.
Otsuka Pharmaceutical is a global healthcare company with the corporate philosophy: "Otsuka-people creating new products for better health worldwide." Otsuka researches, develops, manufactures and markets innovative products, focusing on nutraceuticals products for the maintenance of everyday health and pharmaceutical products to meet unmet medical needs. For more information about Otsuka Pharmaceutical, visit otsuka.co.jp/en.

ONCE Ventures
ONCE Ventures seeks to empower founders and improve the health of consumers by investing in early-stage brands and technologies across North America in the active nutrition, healthy beverages, plant-based foods, and supplements categories. The Los Angeles-based fund is an indirect subsidiary of Otsuka Pharmaceutical Company, Ltd., a subsidiary of Otsuka Holdings Co., Ltd. Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Otsuka group companies employed 47,000 people and had consolidated sales of approximately US$13 billion in 2020. For more information about ONCE Ventures, visit onceventures.com.

SOURCE ONCE Ventures