The 6 European food startups leading investment rounds in 2019

“The arts are the salt of the earth; as salt relates to food, the arts relate to technology.”

-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe-

We´ve been observing the global FoodTech scene for years, and how it has been gaining increasingly more traction and relevance overtime: since 2014 it has been growing rapidly, revealing a vibrant ecosystem of entrepreneurs and investors.

Certain countries and cities have been driving FoodTech in Europe more than others, disrupting each of the stages in the value chain, from food production to consumption. For example Berlin has been making waves with a small number of well-funded startups, Paris with a number of innovative startups but without a stand-out leader yet, and London with a dynamic and balanced ecosystem. Here are some interesting facts we thought you´d like to know:

  • Investments in the European Foodtech landscape reached €4.2 billion between 2014 and 2018
  • Between 2014 and 2018, Europe’s made up 16% of global investments in FoodTech

Here are 6 of the European startups that have presented some of the best investment rounds in 2019.

MEATABLE

Dutch startup Meatable, which develops cruelty-free technologies for the production of cultured meat, is turning to the production of pork, as an epidemic of swine flu has devastated a quarter of the world’s pork supply.

To support this ambitious project, the startup has raised an investment round of $7 million from business angels and institutional investors and received a grant of $3 million from the European Commission. The generous business angels include Taavet Hinrikus, CEO and cofounder of TransferWise, and Albert Wenger, a partner at Union Square Ventures, based in New York.

YNSECT

This French startup, Ynsect, is growing insects! The innovative project is planning to build its first large-scale insect production plant in Amiens, as well as a factory in North America. The factory, with construction scheduled to start this year, will produce 20,000 tons of insect protein annually, which will be dedicated primarily to feeding fish.

To support this project, Ynsect has raised a whopping $125 million investment round led by Astanor Ventures (Belgium), as well as Idinvest Partners & Bpifrance (France).

CORTILIA 

Cortilia, based in Milan, is an e-commerce business that offers fresh products to homes throughout northern Italy, connecting the final consumer with their products farmers and producers. With just a click of a button on the user´s computer, Cortilia delivers fresh products directly to their doors within 24 hours. The service is available online as well as through their app, for iOS and Android.

Filling such an important gap in the market isn´t cheap, the Italian startup, founded in 2012, has just raised an investment round of €8.5 million led by Five Seasons Ventures in accordance with Indaco Ventures, the largest venture capital in Italy.

YFOOD LABS

YFood Labs, based in Munich, was founded in late 2017 with the goal of creating a complete, nutrient-rich and convenient food solution for millennials.

The FoodTech startup has raised a €4.2 million Series A investment round led by FoodTech investor Five Seasons Ventures, with participation from US VC New Ground Ventures.

INFARM

Image: Infarm

Infarm is a Berlin-based startup dedicated to the development of modular hydroponic farms designed for indoor vegetable growing. The system proposed by Infarm allows the creation of small farms, which can be expanded according to the needs of each space in which they are implanted, and which are centrally managed through the technological platform of Infarm itself.

To support this ambitious urban farming project, the German startup has raised €25M in a an investment round led by Balderton Capital. Triple Point Capital, Mons Investments, Cherry Ventures, Quadia and LocalGlobe also participated.

GLOVO

Glovo is a Spanish owned delivery platform that works through an app and operates throughout Europe, Latin America and Africa. It is dedicated to the purchase, collection and delivery of orders (from food to medicinal products) in less than an hour through independent distributors known as “glovers”.

In 2019, the Barcelona-based startup raised another €150M (~ $ 166M) in a Series E round led by the Abu Dhabi state investment company; Mubadala. This amount increased to €150M in a Series D stage round that was announced in April of last year, and $134M in a Series C round in mid-2018. The total funding raised since the business was founded in 2015 stands at around $ 488M. Glovo reported that the last round it participated in puts its business value at more than $1B.

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