SAN FRANCISCO — Tia Lupita Foods has successfully closed a seed round of $2.6 million. The funding was raised by Mexican investment entities and led by Santatera Capital and GBM Ventures, two strategic funds with experience in the food and beverage and consumer products sector.

The seed funding is expected to be used to help advance the company’s growing presence in the “better-for-you” Mexican food segment, Tia Lupita said.

Tia Lupita already received an investment from Kevin O’Leary on the television series “Shark Tank” earlier this year.

“With this large capital infusion, we plan to grow our team, accelerate new product development, and expand into new markets,” said Hector Saldivar, founder of Tia Lupita.

Tia Lupita Foods began in 2018 as a hot sauce manufacturer using a recipe from Mr. Saldivar’s mother, who he immigrated with from Mexico and named the company after. Tia Lupita has expanded into other sustainable food categories such as grain-free tortilla chips, salsa macha (Mexican chili crisp) and cactus tortillas. Tia Lupita offers its products online and in more than 4,000 nationwide retailers such as Whole Foods Market, Publix, HEB, Sprouts Farmers Market, Target, Walmart and Albertsons.