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24 FoodTech insights and deals to know this week (2026 – week #43)

Top-deals-week-43-clio-acquisition-ez-bombs-carbon-farms

Published on October 19, 2026

💸 Funding News

🌶️🇺🇸 EZ Bombs, a US startup, raised $25M for its Mexican seasoning and “seasoning bombs” brand, making complex dishes simple.

 

💊🇮🇳 The Stack, an Indian startup, raised $2.2M for its supplements targeting sleep, recovery and gut health.

 

🧬🇺🇸 Metabolize, a US startup, raised $3.2M for its metabolic health products based on naturally occurring metabolites.

 

🧬🇬🇧 Stride, a British startup, raised £4.6M for its preventative health membership combining DNA, blood and gut health testing with personalised guidance.

 

🌱🇺🇸 BioConsortia, a US startup, raised $15M to accelerate the commercialisation of its microbial biostimulants designed to improve crop performance and reduce reliance on synthetic fertiliser.

 

🌾🇫🇷 CarbonFarm, a French startup, raised €7M for its rice decarbonisation platform (rice production is a large emitter of methane), helping farmers to improve water management and access climate finance

 

🌱🇩🇪 Stenon, a German startup, received an undisclosed investment from Yara’s CVC for its portable soil sensor that measures available nitrogen directly in the field.

 

🌾🇸🇪 OlsAro, a Swedish startup, raised €5M for its climate-resilient crop breeding platform.

 

🐟🇬🇧 MiAlgae, a Scottish startup, secured £2.5M for the development of a commercial facility using whisky industry byproducts to grow microalgae.

 

🐛🇨🇦 Molagri, a Canadian startup, raised $5.8M for its precision biopesticides. Its modular technology is designed to target specific insects and adapt as resistance develops.

 

🐝🇮🇱 BloomX, an Israeli startup, raised $13M for its robotic pollination systems.

 

🛒🇺🇾 Scanntech, a Uruguayan retail technology company, secured a $180M investment for its platform, which analyses retail sales data to help retailers and consumer goods companies track prices, market share and promotions.

 

⭐ Acquisitions, regulation, bankruptcies & partnerships

 

🍫🇺🇸 Stride Consumer Partners acquired a majority stake in Clio, a US brand making chocolate-coated Greek yoghurt bars, with more than $500M in annual revenue. The investment will support distribution, brand building and manufacturing as Clio expands its combination of indulgent snacking and protein-rich dairy.

 

📱🇺🇸 MyFitnessPal acquired Cal AI in March for an undisclosed sum. The calorie-tracking app using image recognition generated over $30M in revenue in two years.

 

🔎🇫🇷 Connecting Food’s technology assets and customer portfolio were acquired by Crystalchain following insolvency proceedings. The French startup specialised in blockchain-based food traceability. Its customers will progressively migrate to Crystalchain’s platform.

 

🌱🇳🇱 LIVEKINDLY Collective completed its acquisition of Dalco Food.

 

🥛🇳🇿 Daisy Lab, a New Zealand precision fermentation startup, was acquired by Mycofeast, a British fermentation company

 

⚖️🇪🇺 A Dutch think tank launched the New Foods RegLab, a programme helping novel food startups prepare for the EU approval process.

 

👀 Ideas for the future & macro trends

 

🚬🇺🇸 Some AI researchers are reportedly taking up smoking to demonstrate their confidence that AI will cure cancer. While an extreme version of a bet on progress, I think it deserves a pause: if it was a good bet? What does it mean for the future, notably of agriculture and food? The consequences could be wide and deep, starting with consumers going towards more unhealthy choices.

 

💊🏨 GLP-1 use is influencing what travellers expect from hotels. In a recent survey, 74% of respondents using the drugs said a hotel catering to their needs (including protein-rich menus, having a gym and a place to store the medication in the rooms) could influence their booking.

 

🌾🇨🇳 Chinese graduates are turning to farming amid a competitive job market, bringing smartphones and digital skills to their new agricultural careers.

 

☕🇬🇧 Caffè Nero partnered with Myprotein to launch protein coffee and matcha drinks across more than 600 UK stores. The iced drinks contain up to 25g of protein with fewer than 160 calories. The success of high-protein drinks is quite impressive and is probably only at its beginning.

 

🥤🇩🇪 Germany’s cabinet approved draft legislation introducing a sugary drinks tax, targeting July 2027, subject to parliamentary approval. Proposed rates are €0.26 per litre for drinks containing 5–8g of sugar per 100ml and €0.32 at 8g or above, creating an additional incentive for beverage reformulation.

 

🔐🇫🇷 A cyberattack disrupted refrigeration systems at more than 700 French supermarkets, forcing stores to discard spoiled food. The incident exposed vulnerabilities in connected equipment.

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