🇫🇷 🥬 Futura Gaïa, a French vertical farming startup, raised €11M for its automated “rotating geoponics” solution. Unlike most players in the space, the startup doesn’t see itself as an operator but as a supplier of turnkey devices. 
🇲🇦 🚚 Terraa, a Moroccan startup, raised $1.5M to develop its fresh produce marketplace. As often said in this newsletter, B2B marketplaces are growing everywhere. However, Terra is slightly different as it operates its logistics.
🇫🇷 ♻️ Bibak, a French startup, raised €6M to end single-use plastic food packaging. Since the start of 2023, reusable packaging has been mandatory in French restaurants. As well-explained here, it can be tough for them to organise cleaning and face theft (McDonald’s containers seem to be particularly attractive). The startup helps restaurants manage the use, deposits, and reward system (when the customer returns the packaging).
🇦🇺 💨 Loam Bio, an Australian startup, raised $75M for its impressive technology to store more carbon in the soil. It adds a coating to seeds, improving their ability to store carbon. With this funding, it will move to the commercialization stage and go international.
🇫🇷 💳 Hey Pongo, a French startup raised €5M for its marketing tool helping restaurant owners to manage fidelity, reviews and marketing campaigns.
🇺🇸 🍽️ Zerocater, a US-based startup, raised $15M for its digital canteen service.
🇮🇱 🐝 BloomX, an Israeli startup, raised $8M for its AI-based solution to tackle the challenge of pollination and, notably the dwindling numbers of wild bees. It has developed a bio-mimicking technology to pollinate crops mechanically. While this topic may seem niche, it is far from it. Indeed, a significant part of our food relies on pollination (either directly or indirectly as feed for animals). That’s why we observe a surge (and can expect many more) in the number of companies focused on this area.
