A VEGAN pizza restaurant is to launch a dairy-free cheese factory after securing £35,000 funding in an investment pitching competition.

Purezza is the UK’s first vegan pizzeria and has two sites, one in Brighton and one in Camden, London.

The Brighton site is in St James’s Street.

It landed the investment after wowing the judges at Pitch + Plant, an annual pitching event hosted by Vevolution designed to provide funding to companies marketing vegan products and services.

Vevolution is a London-based events company which specialises in workshops focused on vegan and plant-based business and activism.

Pitch +Plant was open exclusively to companies marketing vegan products and services.

Tim Barclay, co-founder and co-owner of Purezza, said: “This investment is extremely exciting for us and sets the wheels in motion for where we want to take the business.

“We’ll be continuing to raise funds for the factory in coming weeks and look forward to distributing our mozzarella to stores and restaurants in the near future.

“We’re currently seeking further investment and welcome any interested parties.

“We look forward to expanding Purezza and changing the world for the better.”

Purezza unveiled a new concept called Mozzarella 2.0 - a completely vegan lab crafted mozzarella alternative which is also free from common allergens such as soya, gluten and nuts.

It is also made from all natural ingredients, whereas other plant-based cheese brands contain chemical-based additives and preservatives such as modified starch, lactic acid, and titanium dioxide.

The cheese will also be free from palm oil.

Purezza’s approach to innovation is highlighted by its brand strapline of ‘Plant Pioneers’.

Purezza also claims the cheese will be a far more ethical alternative to dairy-based cheeses, being more environmentally-friendly.

It’ll contain just a fraction of the saturated fat content of regular cheese and be completely cholesterol free.

Purezza is famous for manufacturing its own cheeses for its range of vegan pizzas in its restaurants, which include Italian classics such as a margherita with vegan-friendly ingredients.

The mozzarella recipe is top secret but is known to be based on rice milk.

In addition to selling the cheeses via retail, Purezza will be supplying its growing restaurant chain and other businesses looking to serve vegan options.

Purezza plans to raise further investment and seek crowdfund via Crowdcube in the near future.

Purezza has been operating in Brighton since November 2015 and opened a London branch in March 2018.

The restaurant has become a household name among vegan and vegetarian foodies.

Purezza specialises in plant-based alternatives to classic Neapolitan pizzas.

Purezza is renowned for developing its own range of vegan cheese exclusively for its restaurants.