Real Bowl, an Italian start-up operating in the fresh and sustainable pet food sector, announces that it has completed a €3.2 million seed round of investment with the support of a pool of private investors. The transaction follows the previous investment by Terra Next, an acceleration programme for innovative start-ups and SMEs operating in the bioeconomy sector, created on the initiative of CDP Venture Capital together with Intesa Sanpaolo Innovation Centre and Cariplo Factory.
The capital increase will enable Real Bowl to strengthen its production capacity, enhance research and development activities for the introduction of new nutritional formulas, and accelerate its internationalisation process. Part of the resources will also be allocated to new strategic hires, marketing activities, the digitalisation of commercial processes, and the optimisation of direct sales channels, with the aim of making the model scalable in key foreign markets as well.
“With this capital increase, we are entering a new phase of industrial development,” said Alberto Alfonso, CEO and co-founder of Real Bowl (pictured with the team), in a statement. “We have created a complete dog food, prepared with fresh and natural ingredients, combining scientific research, sustainability and Italian food tradition. The support of our investors will allow us to expand our production capacity and bring a Made in Italy pet food model to the world that represents both technological and nutritional excellence.”
“We have great confidence in Real Bowl’s industrial potential and in the expertise of the team behind it,” says Stefano Molino, head of CDP Venture Capital’s Accelerator Fund. “We believe that this company has all the elements it needs to establish itself as a leader in the European pet food market: innovation, sustainability and Italian-made quality, perfectly in line with Terra Next’s mission.”
The transaction is in addition to the €500,000 convertible loan granted by Intesa San Paolo in 2024, bringing the total investment raised by the company to €3.7 million.
The global pet food market reached a value of approximately $124 billion in 2024, with an estimated average annual growth of 4.84% until 2032, according to a statement released by the start-up. Within this scenario, the fresh dog food sector is experiencing a significantly higher growth rate of 20.2% per annum, driven by demand for natural and functional foods.
There are over 90 million dogs in Europe, 14.6 million of which are in Italy, confirming its status as the country with the highest number of domestic dogs in the European Union. The fresh pet food segment, still marginal in terms of penetration, is now one of the most dynamic areas for innovation and sustainability.
Founded in 2020 by Alberto Alfonso, Lorenzo Tecchio and Leonardo Colturato, Real Bowl was created with the aim of bringing the quality and freshness of a freshly prepared meal to the pet food world, with the convenience of a long-life product. Real Bowl has developed an in-house, patent-pending production process for making dog food that can be stored at room temperature, prepared with fresh ingredients and without the addition of preservatives. The proprietary technology developed by Real Bowl preserves the organoleptic and nutritional properties of the raw materials to the maximum, keeping the aroma and quality of freshly cooked food intact.
Through its digital platform, the company also offers an online customisation system that allows recipes to be adapted to the characteristics and nutritional needs of each dog, based on parameters such as age, weight, activity level and food sensitivities. The formulations, developed in collaboration with veterinary nutritionists, use only fresh, Italian-made ingredients from certified food supply chains to ensure dogs receive healthy, complete and high-quality food.
The company operates a 4,000 square metre production facility surrounded by 2.5 hectares of greenery in Ospedaletto Euganeo, Padua, with a current production capacity of up to 12,000 tonnes per year but with enormous growth potential within the same plant. Today, Real Bowl is present in over 400 pet stores in Italy and through direct online subscription channels, with steady growth in revenue and customer base.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ©