General
Natural Order Acquisition Corp (“NOAC”) is a blank check company that was incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware on August 10, 2020. We were formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as our initial business combination. Although there is no restriction or limitation on what industry our target operates in, it is our intention to pursue prospective targets that are focused on technologies and products related to sustainable plant-based food and beverages, alternative protein, and ingredients. More specifically, our target market includes companies that use plant-based, cell-based or precise fermentation technologies to develop food products that eliminate animals from the food supply chain. We refer to all these technologies herein as “plant-based” or “alternative.” While we may pursue a target located anywhere in the world, we anticipate targeting companies domiciled in North America or Europe. At the time of preparing this prospectus, we have not identified any specific business combination, nor has anyone on our behalf initiated or engaged in any substantive discussions, formal or otherwise, related to such a transaction. Our efforts to date are limited to organizational activities related to this offering.
Our Sponsor, Leadership, and Competitive Advantages
Our sponsor is led by Mr. Paresh Patel and Mr. Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni, each of whom have invested for more than 20 years in public and private emerging growth companies with a focus on leading emerging technology and sustainable and plant-based food product companies. We believe that our management team has the investment experience, strategic knowledge, relationships, and access to capital and human resources to source unique opportunities that will offer attractive risk-adjusted returns in a rapidly expanding sector of the global economy. In particular, we believe our network of relationships with leaders in the plant-based food industry can provide our target company with a competitive advantage to accelerate its growth or identify attractive acquisitions or strategic alliances.
We will target private emerging growth companies that are developing nutritious plant-based food products that deliver a consumer experience comparable or superior to that provided by animal-based products. We will seek products that encourage consumers to eat more, not less, of the traditional dishes they enjoy by using products that promote healthy living, environmental sustainability, and animal welfare; all benefits associated with consuming plant-based foods. We seek a target company whose paradigm shifting product or services will enable breakthrough penetration into mainstream consumers seeking delicious and satisfying yet better-for-you alternatives to animal products.
Paresh Patel, our co-founder, has been our President, Chief Executive Officer and Director since our inception in August 2020. Paresh has managed his private investment office, Sandstone Investments since 2014. From 2005 to 2014, Paresh was the founder and Managing Partner of Sandstone Capital, an investment fund managing more than $1.0 billion and focused on long-term investments in public and private companies in Asia. Sandstone invests in a wide range of industries with a focus on pharmaceuticals, financial services, and technology. From 2000 to 2004, Paresh was the founder of Sparta Group, a multi-billion dollar family office. Paresh’s more notable private investments include Bharat Financial (IPO 2010), A123 Systems (IPO 2009), Tejas Networks (IPO 2014), AU SFB (IPO 2014), Relicore (acquired by Symantec in 2006), Airvana (IPO 2007), Flipkart (acquired by Walmart in 2018), Simulate (formerly NUGGS), VelocityDx, and GrapheneDx. Paresh has served on the board of directors of several public and private businesses in the US and India. Paresh also served as a director for Harvard Business School India and was an Executive Producer of the 2018 documentary film “The Game Changers” that advocates the health benefits of a plant-based diet for high-performance athletes as well as for the general population.
Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni, our co-founder has been our Chairman of the board since October 2020. He is an entrepreneur, activist, and advisor to businesses, governments, and nonprofits around the world. For many years, he has been an investor in a wide range of fields, from bioscience to food, from agriculture to technology. Directly or through his partnerships, Sebastiano is an investor in more than 60 companies in the plant-based food and beverage sector. In December 2017, he founded a private investment fund, Dismatrix, and has served as its director ever since. In that same year, Sebastiano joined NRS New Reality Solutions, a convergent innovation platform leveraging bioscience and data science, as a Senior Advisor and an investor. Since April 2019, he has also been a partner in the Blue Horizon Group, a leading worldwide investor in plant-based companies. Since October of the same year, he has served as the co-managing partner and director of Dismatrix Group, which focuses on venture capital and private equity investments across tech, consumer, and food revolutions, including alt-proteins. Sebastiano is also a co-owner and honorary chairman of Querciabella, a Tuscan organic, biodynamic, and vegan winery that has garnered international acclaim. He recently founded the gluten-free pasta brand Bontasana, and Skyrunner Foods, a revolutionary baby food company. A longtime animal rights activist, Sebastiano supports several global nonprofits working to end the exploitation of animals. He serves on the boards of Animal Outlook (since 2018) and the Culture & Animals Foundation (since 2018) as well as on the advisory boards of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (since 2008), Animal Equality (since 2019), the International Anti-Poaching Foundation (since 2020), and Project Coyote (since 2020). In 2020, Sebastiano founded the Plant-Based Empowerment Foundation, a nonprofit operating in rural Senegal that is dedicated to providing children and women access to education, healthcare, and nourishing plant-based food. Sebastiano served as advisor to Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi from 2014 to 2016.