Gray Construction and Ameris Bank—the two primary secured creditors of defunct cultivated meat company Believer Meats—are mulling a combined credit and cash bid for the firm’s facility in North Carolina after UPSIDE Foods terminated its $50 million offer last month.
Gray Construction filed a lawsuit last year alleging it was owed $36.4 million for design and construction work on the North Carolina facility, while Ameris provided a $25 million loan backed by a first-priority security interest in Believer’s bank accounts, machinery, and equipment.
In a September 16 status report filed with the North Carolina Business Court, receiver Kevin Sink said Gray and Ameris had indicated that one or both of them intend to enter into a binding agreement to acquire the facility and related assets through a combination of a credit bid and cash. Sink said he had received a definitive term sheet from Gray and was continuing negotiations.
A credit bid would allow the creditors to use some of the debt they are owed as consideration for the assets rather than paying the full purchase price in cash.
Any deal would still be subject to court approval and competing bids, said Sink, who expects the proposed sale process to include a 21-day objection and upset-bid period, with an auction to follow if additional bids emerge.
According to Sink’s status report, “Any such proposed acquisition would be the subject of a motion to be filed with this court. The receiver anticipates filing such motion in the next 10-14 days.”
Receiver: ‘Numerous parties have visited the facility’
According to Sink, “Numerous parties have visited the facility in Wilson, North Carolina and executed non-disclosure agreements in order to receive information regarding the debtor. Both the receiver and BDO Consulting Group have engaged in discussions with such interested parties and have provided information to such parties.
“Indeed, while no additional offers [aside from the withdrawn $50 million offer from UPSIDE Foods] have been received, the interest in the transferred assets appears to be as high as it was prior to the final bid deadline.”
That said, it has become clear that Gray Construction and Ameris “do not intend to fund the receivership for an additional extended period of time,” said Sink.
UPSIDE Foods, which terminated its $50 million bid for the Believer Meats site in August because the conditions of the transaction were not met, said at the time that it remained interested in the facility. AgFunderNews has reached out to the firm for comment.
Israeli trustee fielding bids for IP
One of the best-funded players in the space, having raised almost $400 million from backers including ADM Ventures and Tyson Ventures, Future Meat Technologies Inc (d.b.a. Believer Meats) ceased operations in December. It was put into general receivership in early February after receiver Kevin Sink secured court approval to sell the firm’s US assets.
The sale included Believer Meats’ $150 million Wilson, North Carolina production facility and related assets including bioreactors, media and process tanks, centrifuges, freezing systems, wastewater systems, automation and production-control systems plus some intangible assets such as permits and licenses. It excludes selected kit leased by CSC Leasing and Roberts Oxygen Company.
Yoel Freilich, the Israeli trustee tasked with selling Believer Meats’ IP, told AgFunderNews that he has “received bids from several parties for the IP all through the industry.”
*The case is Gray Construction Inc d.b.a. James N Gray Company (plaintiff) vs Future Meat Technologies Inc d.b.a. Believer Meats (defendant) and Meris Bank (intervenor/plaintiff) in North Carolina Business Court, a specialized division of the state’s Superior Court system. Case: 2025-CV-S5578
Further reading:
Cultivated meat deep dive: After the crash, who’s still standing?
