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11 FoodTech news to know this week (2025 – week #6)

Published on February 3, 2025

🇫🇷🐛 Ynsect and Agronutris, two leading insect farming startups, face financial distress and could soon disappear or be acquired at scrap value. While other players seem to be faring much better, these two may not have chosen the best path (insect and/or production technology). We remain confident that there is a future for insects used for animal feed and as a bio input.

🇺🇸🤖 Bear Robotics, a US startup developing service robots for the hospitality industry (notably to assist service in restaurants), was acquired by LG, the leading South Korean electronics company.

🇳🇱🌾 Agurotech, a Dutch startup, raised €2.25M for its crop monitoring solutions. It notably supports farmers with AI-driven agricultural analytics.

🇫🇷🍾 Le Fourgon, a French startup, raised €8.2M to scale its beverage delivery operations focused on using reusable glass bottles.

🇳🇱 🥑 OneThird, a Dutch startup, raised €3.5M for its freshness scanners that aim at reducing food waste. Its infrared technology “scans” produce in farms, distributors, or grocery stores and helps businesses or consumers to make decisions.

🇺🇸 🏭 Liberation Labs, a US startup, raised $50.5M for its biomanufacturing facility. It wants to become the larger contract manufacturer for precision fermentation players.

🇫🇷🧀 Jay & Joy, a French startup developing plant-based cheeses, raised €2M to fund its growth. It also acquires Les Nouveaux Affineurs, a competitor, for €300k for plant-based cheese production. This last figure highlights the difficulties of cheese alternatives: this startup has raised about €3.5M since being founded in 2017.

🇮🇩🌿 Banyu, an Indonesian startup, raised $1.25M to grow its seaweed farming operations.

🇺🇸🤖 Bonsai Robotics, a US startup, raised $15M for AI-driven autonomous agriculture robots, with applications in orchards.

🇳🇴🥬 Avisomo, a Norwegian startup, raised €5M to develop its vertical farming solutions and reduce the country’s dependency on imports of leafy greens.

🇫🇷🛒 Beans, a French startup, raised €1.4M for its anti-waste marketplace selling leftover and ugly produce.

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