Re-raises $115m, Jai Kisan lands $50m: The Week in Agrifoodtech

While $100 million-plus foodtech funding rounds are less common these days, Afresh managed to close one this week for its operating system that reduces food waste in supermarkets. Fintech startup Jai Kisan raised funds to help rural businesses in India, and across the industry downsizing and layoffs continue, particularly in restaurant tech.

Foodtech funding

🇺🇸 Afresh raises $115 million in Series B led by Spark Capital. Afresh will scale its operating system that helps reduce waste from grocery stores to “thousands more stores”. (Food dive)

🇮🇹 Vertis is leading the €7 million ($7.1 million) round for restaurant industry marketplace Deliveristo. Milan-based Deliveristo will add new products to its extensive online catalog for chefs and restaurant owners and prepare for expansion into other parts of Europe. (EU startups)

🇺🇸 Impact Food secures $500,000 for plant-based seafood. The fundraising will support Impact Foods’ employment and R&D efforts as the startup prepares for a pre-seed round. (Road economist)

🇮🇸 Loki Foods lands $650,000 pre-seed round from Sustainable Food Ventures, MGMT Ventures and others. Loki is developing a line of plant-based seafood analogues, including a whole-cut Atlantic cod alternative. (Green Queen)

🇮🇱 Smart grocery cart company Shopic raises $35 million. Qualcomm Ventures led the Series B round, which Shopic will use to move into more global markets. (Technology in Asia)

🇺🇸 PreciTaste raises $24 million in Series A for its AI-based kitchen management system for restaurants. Existing investor Melitas Ventures along with Cleveland Avenue led the round. (PRNewswire)

🇸🇬 ProfilePrint ends Series A1 with Cargill for its AI-based food quality technology. Additional strategic shareholders include the Louis Dreyfus Company, Olam International, Sucafina and Sinar Mas, among others. (Profile printout)

Agtech funding

🇮🇳 Rural fintech firm Jai Kisan raises $50 million from GMO Venture Partners and others. Jai Kisan will use the funds to expand its product suite and improve its customer experience. (Business Standard)

🇮🇳 Accel leads a $2.6 million round for Produze. The latter’s digital supply chain infrastructure aims to connect local agricultural producers in India with international retailers. (TechCrunch)

🇮🇳 Dry fruit, seed and nut marketplace Farmley raises $6 million Series A round led by DSG Consumer Partners. Farmley will allocate funds to channel expansion, grow the team and build the brand further. (AFN)

🇨🇭 🇮🇹 xFarm Technologies banks €17 million ($17.4 million) Series B led by Swisscom Ventures. The Swiss-Italian start-up will expand the availability of its farm management information system. (AFN)

M&A, IPOs and partnerships

🇺🇸 7-Eleven buys delivery start-up Skipcart. The deal could allow the C-store chain to compete more directly with food delivery services such as DoorDash and GoPuff. (The information)

🇺🇸 ADM and Benson Hill have a long-term strategic partnership. The two companies will work to scale the latter’s “innovative soy ingredients” for use in plant-based foods and beverages. (Food Business News)

Other news

🇺🇸 Online grocery service Farmstead is closing operations in 4 of its 5 markets. The company laid off 22% of its employees in the process and now operates only in its home market, San Francisco. (Grocery dive)

🌎 FoodHack profiles more than 30 female angel investors who finance food and climate startups. These women are “at the forefront of funding breakthrough technologies that are shaping a better future for people and the planet.” (FoodHack)

🇺🇸 Cracker Barrel is getting heat after adding Impossible Sausage to its menu. Comments say a lot more about America’s culture wars than about plant-based proteins. (Washington Post)

🇩🇪 Bluu Seafood unveils first cultured fish products, including “lab-grown” fish sticks and fish balls. The company is also preparing to start the regulatory process in Asia, Europe and North America. (TechCrunch)

🇬🇧 How Andy Cato went from electronic music to regenerative agriculture. 15 years ago, Cato sold the rights to his band Groove Armada’s songs to co-found the Wildfarmed community and help adopt regenerative agriculture. (Guardian)

🇺🇸 Tazo will transition its tea, herb and spice supply chain to regenerative agriculture by 2029. The brand aims to develop 60% to 80% of its products through regenerative practices by the end of 2023. (Food dive)

🇬🇧 🇳🇱 Deliveroo is leaving the Netherlands under “challenging market conditions”. The food delivery company reported a pretax loss of $178 million for the first half of 2022, up 54% from last year. (Tech.eu)

🇺🇸 Sweetgreen is laying off 5% of its support center workforce. The salad chain, which lowered its 2022 forecast, is also reducing office construction “to reduce operating expenses.” (CNBC)