๐ฆ๐บย ๐ท Clove, an Australian startup, raised $4.15M for its AI-powered recipe platform. Users will have free access to recipes and an option to buy the products. While many (many) startups have tried to develop innovative recipe websites and apps over the years and have mostly failed to create any sustainable business model around it, I am impressed by the ability of this team to raise such a high level of funding on an idea (the app doesnโt exist yet).
๐ฉ๐ชย ๐ย Infarm, Europeโs only vertical farming unicorn, is facing difficulties despite having raised $500M. This fascinating article gives some insights into what has gone wrong. One indication is the almost absence of revenue: in 2021, Infarm generated โฌ8M ย for 127.8M of losses. It says it wants to pivot to a B2B model (like many other vertical farming startups), but it seems complicated to imagine how it will be possible as most of the employees have been let go, and the farms have been shut down.
๐ฎ๐ณย ๐ Vegrow, an Indian startup, raised $46M for its fresh produce B2B marketplace. This is again a show of strength of the Indian ecosystem, notably for its numerous fresh food marketplaces. It is one of the world’s most innovative places for this platform, which connects growers and sellers.
๐ช๐บย ๐ธย The European Union has committed โฌ50M to aid startups and small businesses scale alternative protein production, focusing on precision fermentation.
๐ซ๐ทย ๐งช Spore.Bio, a French startup, raised โฌ8M ย to enable quicker detection of bacteria in food and pharmaceutical products.
๐ฉ๐ฐย ๐ค Seasony, a Danish startup, raised โฌ1.5M for its robotic solutions for vertical farming.
๐บ๐ธย ๐ Keychain, an American startup, raised $18M for its platform that helps CPG brands find manufacturing partners.
๐ซ๐ทย ๐ฌ Inalve, a French startup, raised โฌ2M for its microalgae production on biofilm.
๐ซ๐ทย ๐ฐFraรฎche Cancan, a French virtual canteen startup, was acquired by Neocorner, a provider of coffee and vending machines. This comes after the startup was put into administration.
๐ซ๐ทย โป๏ธ Dionymer, a French startup, raised โฌ1.5M to upcycle organic waste into biodegradable polymers.
