💸 Funding News

🐄🇳🇿 Halter, a New Zealand startup, raised $220M at a $2B valuation (one of the largest agtech rounds ever) to scale its GPS-based virtual-fencing collars for cattle.

🐄🇦🇺 Rumin8, an Australian startup, raised ~3M from a New Zealand fund with the goal to fast-track its methane-reducing feed additive in this country.

🐄🇸🇪 Volta Greentech, a Swedish startup, raised €1.7M to support the commercial launch of its methane-reducing feed additive.

🌾🇮🇳 Agrim, an Indian startup, raised $17.3M to scale its B2B marketplace that connects millions of farmers across India with input manufacturers (seeds, crop protection, tools…).

🌍🇨🇦 Miraterra, a Canadian startup, raised $16M for a soil intelligence platform that uses spectroscopy, genomics, and geospatial tools to generate comprehensive soil health data.

🌾🇮🇳 WayCool, an Indian startup, raised ~$22.7M to fund its platform that connects farmers to food businesses.

🌿🇳🇱 BBLeap, a Dutch startup, raised €5M for its high-precision spraying technology.

🧫🇮🇳 ELMED Life Sciences, a Hyderabad-based biotech startup, raised $2.7M for its microbiome-based probiotic solutions across animal health, agriculture, and human health.

🍫🇮🇹 Foreverland, an Italian startup, raised €6M to scale its cocoa-free chocolate alternative made from carob across Europe.

🥒🇺🇸 Good Girl Snacks, a US startup, raised $3M, a pickles brand targeting Gen Z consumers who use them as a snack rather than a condiment. It follows a pattern that is increasingly observed: a niche trend that becomes a TikTok phenomenon, which in turn translates into a growth brand.

🌴🇺🇸 Just Date, a US brand, raised funds from a Private Equity firm for its date syrup and other date-sweetened products. It targets the growing market of consumers seeking sugar alternatives, notably ones with a glycemic index.

🥨🇺🇸 Stellar Snacks, a US brand, received a minority investment from a Private equity firm to scale its better-for-you pretzels in retail stores across the country.

🧪🇦🇺 Cauldron Ferm, an Australian startup, raised $8.5M for its continuous (never-stopping) precision fermentation facility.

🌱🇫🇮 Elea & Lili, a Finnish startup, raised €2.5M to develop a cellulose-based replacement for superabsorbent polymers (used in diapers and as agricultural soil conditioners).

🍽️🇮🇳 Swish, an Indian startup, raised $38M to scale its 10-minute freshly cooked meal delivery operations. Unlike aggregators, it owns its kitchens, cooks the food, runs its own app and delivers.

🤖🇳🇱 SOUS, a Dutch startup, raised €4M for its platform that handles digital marketing, discovery and customer retention for independent restaurants.

⭐ Acquisitions

🚴🇸🇬 Grab, the Indonesia-based delivery leader, is acquiring Foodpanda’s Taiwan business from Delivery Hero for $600M. Foodpanda Taiwan generated $1.8B in GMV in 2025.

💰 🇫🇷 La Brigade de Véro, a French startup which delivers fresh weight-loss pre-cooked meal boxes to consumers, has been acquired by Norac Foods, an industrial bakery company. The startup reached €23.3M in revenue in 2025.

📊 Leading Companies & Macro Trends

🐷🇨🇳 Chinese pig prices have hit a 15-year low, with producer margins at four-year lows, as weak domestic pork consumption declines due to deflationary pressures. After years of government incentives to scale up production (pork consumption remains a status symbol in China), it seems that, here as in many other areas, China has created a huge oversupply.

📉🇺🇸The number of US companies publishing sustainability reports dropped 17% in 2025, the first decline in five years of tracking. The retreat is concentrated among small and mid-cap companies.

⚠️🌍 Interesting report on the food crisis consequences of the Iran war, with consequences from Minnesota corn farmers facing $10,000 extra fertiliser bills to Bangladesh rice fields going unwatered for lack of diesel. As a consequence, the UN estimates that 45M additional people will face acute food insecurity by June.

🇫🇷 🇺🇸 🥃 Pernod Ricard (France, brands such as Jameson, Absolut, Martell) and Brown-Forman (USA, with brands like Jack Daniels) confirmed merger talks. The deal comes as both groups face headwinds, notably declining sales in China and the US, tariffs, and a consumer shift away from alcohol.