The Week in Agrifoodtech: Swiftly bags $100m for grocery tech, Pano’s $20m to fight wildfires with AI
Front-of-house restaurant software startup Zenchef cooks up new financing and Land O’Lakes’ Truterra arm lands a grant from the USDA.
Front-of-house restaurant software startup Zenchef cooks up new financing and Land O’Lakes’ Truterra arm lands a grant from the USDA.
France’s Capagro launches $200 million agrifoodtech fund, Gotham Greens lands $310 million, and animal-free cheese developments proliferate.
Two Boston startups welcomed new executives and McDonalds got a new chief impact officer.
An eGrocer bagged new capital, Uber and Nuro struck a major deal, and one company legally served foie gras in California.
Carbon-neutral milk company Neutral Milk closed a Series A round and a few different cultivated meat startups reached new milestones.
Fashion designer Stella McCartney is helping launch a climate-focused fund and alt-protein heavyweight Eat Just raised capital to expand in China.
Layoffs, cuts, and reorganizations continue across the foodtech industry, especially for restaurant-related businesses like Sweetgreen and Deliveroo.
Canadian indoor farming company Fieldless Farms raised Series A funding and MycoWorks debuted hats made from mushroom roots.
While foodtech startups feel the crunch of the current downturn, fundraising in agtech and alternative protein keeps coming.
Also: Israeli foodtech startup Phytolon landed $14.5 million, and two food delivery firms were raided by EU authorities over antitrust concerns.
Elsewhere, e-grocer Ocado raised $700 million from the public markets.
France’s HappyVore secured nearly $40 million to open a facility for plant-based meat while cereal giant Kellogg split into three independent companies.
Plus: alt-cheesemakers raise new funds, delivery ‘bots head to college campuses, and IKEA strikes a deal with indoor ag startup Infarm.
General Mills invested $3 million more into regen ag, Lunchbox acquired another restaurant ordering platform, and Cox delved deeper into indoor farming.
Elsewhere, US ag robotics specialist FarmWise teased a new weeding implement along with its latest fundraise.
Multiple restaurant tech startups made headlines this week; while a massive, multinational carbon initiative got off the ground in Africa.
Alt-protein producers raised several early-stage rounds for meat and dairy alternatives, while two more countries approved the sale of GMO wheat.
Mashgin builds contactless self-checkout machines; while Absolute is vertically integrating the ag value chain. Elsewhere, Brightseed banked $68 million.
“Instant delivery” e-grocer Zepto got closer to unicorn status with its Series D round, while VitroLabs raised funds for its cell-cultured animal leather.
Elsewhere, the Gates Foundation and Qatar’s development fund pledged $200 million to help African smallholders with climate change adaptation.
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International Fresh Produce Association launches year 3 of its produce accelerator