The week was dotted by a handful of early-stage rounds for the likes of food biotech Digestiva, nylon recycling company Syntetica, personalized supplements maker Bioniq, and several others. Funds-wise, ag and food investor Tiverton closed its Fund III and Trill Impact raised €90 million ($98 million).
Meanwhile, Voyage Foods entered the bean-less coffee space, alt-protein startup Mycorena filed for bankruptcy, and Cropin launched an “AI-powered” agri-intelligence tool.
Foodtech funding
🇺🇸 Digestiva closes $18.4 million Series A financing Street Insider
🇬🇧 Bioniq, leader in AI-driven personalized supplements, raises $15mln Series B Zawya
Agtech funding
🇦🇺 Biosecurity threats software startup plants $5.3 million Seed round Startup Daily
🇬🇧 Permia Sensing secures £150K for precision farming techniques in palm plantations Tech.eu
Climate tech funding
🇫🇷 Paris-based Syntetica raises €4.2 million to scale nylon recycling for the global clothing market EU Startups
🇦🇺 Sun Cable OGs raise $1.7 million Seed round for their carbon removal & recycling startup, Fugu Startup Daily
🇬🇧 Briefly Bio raises $1.2M pre-seed to revolutionise scientific experiment documentation with AI Tech Funding News
M&A, IPOs & partnerships
🇨🇭 🇺🇸 Syngenta reveals latest tie-up to accelerate launch of ‘pioneering biological solution’ AgtechNavigator
🇺🇸 CORE Electric and FarmBox Foods partner to grow trees for reforestation Colorado Biz
🇺🇸 January AI and Mars leverage AI to generate product and consumer insights Business Wire
🇮🇱 ICL and Lavie Bio leverage AI to advance development of biostimulants Agribusiness Global
🇺🇸 🇳🇴 PepsiCo inks fertilizer deal with Yara to cut food emissions Bloomberg
Funds, grants & accelerators
🇺🇸 Tiverton raises $870m for Fund III Agri Investor
🇸🇪 Trill Impact closes venture fund after raising €90m Impact Investor
🇺🇸 $51 Million federal grant for precision fermentation hub to drive innovation, growth, and job creation in Illinois Vegconomist
🇨🇦 From single-use plastic alternatives to responsible farm AI, Ontario invests $ 7M in research Vertical Farm Daily
People moves
🇨🇦 GoodLeaf Farms appoints Andy O’Brien as new CEO Vertical Farm Daily
🇺🇸 General Mills Names Asheesh Saksena Chief Strategy & Growth Officer General Mills
🇺🇸 FBN appoints Dean Williams to lead its agricultural inputs business FBN
🇺🇸 FBN appoints Guillaume Luebke as CFO FBN
🇺🇸 Kraft Heinz hires ex-Pepsi marketer Todd Kaplan as CMO for North America Ad Age
Other news
🇸🇬 Singapore approves 16 insect species for human consumption Smithsonian
🇺🇸 Voyage Foods enters beanless coffee category with bean-free brew for foodservice operators and CPG brands PR Newswire
🇺🇸 Cargill invests $1m in research on methane reduction in cattle Beef Magazine
🇸🇪 Mycorena files for bankruptcy, seeks new ownership to continue pioneering mycoprotein ingredients Vegconomist
🇺🇸 Biome Makers launches new agronomic insights tool BeCrop Farm CropLife
🇮🇳 Cropin launches Sage: World’s first real-time AI-powered agri-intelligence platform Future Farming
🇬🇧 Meatly receives world-first authorisation for cell-cultivated pet food Tech.eu
🇺🇸 Deere backs down from diversity initiatives after online attacks Ad Age