A plant-based protein startup that recently put down roots in Boulder has hooked a round of venture capital funding.

Emergy Foods revealed its inaugural $4.8 million investment round in a July 18 SEC filing. Twelve investors participated in the round, led by Congruent Ventures, a fund that invests in early-stage startups in the sustainability space.

CEO Tyler Huggins said last week that the company, launched last year, plans to use the money for general growth.

“We’ll use it for team building, bringing on top talent in food science, marketing and business development,” Huggins said. “We’ll also build out our production system to prove what we’re doing is scalable.”

Emergy Foods will launch its own line of plant-based meats next year, Huggins said. But in the meantime, the startup has refined a range of “next-generation” protein ingredients that don’t contain soy, wheat or pea protein, but are still high in protein and fiber, its website said.

The startup offers these plant-based protein ingredients, which it claims are meat-like in taste, appearance and texture, to food manufacturers across the country.

The startup initially was based in Chicago, but moved to Boulder in May. Its new 5,000-square-foot space, located at 6880 Winchester Circle, houses its production facility and offices for its eight employees.

A press release said that part of the recent investment round is going toward establishing its Boulder headquarters, “to further refine its proprietary technology and establish a consumer-friendly brand.”

In addition to its fresh investments, the company also secured a total of $1.3 million in grant funding from the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory and the Chain Reaction Innovation, per a press release.