Top VCs say these 10 'agtech' companies will shape the future of food

InFarm

Berlin-based InFarm is growing food in innovative in-store trays which use LED growing systems and so-called "sunflower" tray technology in vertical farms. That massively reduces carbon dioxide emissions and other climate-related costs.

"Infarm is collapsing the fresh food (herbs, salads, fungi) supply chain down to farms that are at the point of sale in food retailers, so that customers buy very fresh, highly nutritious, and tasty products that have not traveled long distances, been stored in dark vacuums, or been treated with pesticides, etc.," Daniel Waterhouse, a partner at Balderton Capital and a board member at Infarm, said in an interview.

Centralized software is also used to ensure that growing conditions and recipes are optimized across its network with each "farm" able to produce 1,200 plants per month.

Simple Feast

Simple Feast is a Danish company which provides "almost ready" meal boxes. Weekly deliveries are sustainably packaged and then transported to customers direct from the company's team of chefs and food scientists. (Just the last 10 or so minutes of prep is required.)

"Feast helps people embrace a partial or full shift to a healthy nutritious plant-based diet," says Waterhouse, who also serves on SimpleFeast's board.

Simple Feast raised $12 million last year from Balderton and 14W in New York, while investors Sweet Capital and ByFounders are also re-invested the round.

Apeel Sciences

While so much of the agriculture space is about how to grow more food, this California-based startup is instead taking a look at how to preserve the food that's being grown for longer. Founded in 2012 after receiving a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates foundation, Apeel Sciences has developed plant-derived coatings for growers, suppliers, and retailers to use to allow produce to stay fresh longer.

"For a consumer, it means your fruit is perfectly ripe, just as if it came out of your home garden, available any time," said Vijay Pande, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, an investor in Apeel Sciences. "It has the potential to make a huge impact on the $1 trillion food waste crisis, open new markets, and could naturally play a key role in feeding the globe."

DBL Partners, Upfront Ventures, and S2G Ventures are among the firms that have invested in Apeel Sciences.

NinjaCart

NinjaCart takes aim at India's supply chain, connecting farmers to the business they sell for. By serving as the collection, fulfillment, and distribution centers, NinjaCart can help farmers rake in 20% more revenue.

"NinjaCart allows farmers to deal directly with establishments, thereby cutting out middlemen, and earning more for their produce," said Subrata Mitra, a partner at Accel Partners, an investor in NinjaCart.

It's not just farmers that benefit from NinjaCart. Stores are also able to get their food quicker at competitive prices. The end consumer can also trace their produce directly back to the farms where they were grown.

Samunati

Samunnati works with small and medium India-based entities involved in agriculture. Founded in 2014, Samunnati provides specialized loans to those throughout the supply chain.

The space is ripe for opportunity, with roughly 60% of Indian people make their living in agriculture, but it only accounting for 15% of India's gross domestic product.

"Samunnati focuses on five broad segments of agriculture—fresh fruits, vegetables and flowers; dairy, poultry and fishery; post-harvest food processing industry; agri inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, agrochemicals, machinery and farm equipment, small and micro-irrigation; and field crops and horticulture commodities," said Mahendran Balachandran, partner at Accel, an investor in Samunnati.

AgroStar

Built around the mission of #HelpingFarmersWin, AgroStar provides India-based farmers with real-time expert advice and products. The startup uses a combination of data, technology and experience in the space to help farmers improve their productivity and profits.

"AgroStar is a direct-to-farmer digital app that enables farmers to procure high-quality agricultural inputs at a fair price," said Prashanth Prakash, partner at Accel, which is an investor in AgroStar.

The app offers everything from personalized content to products such as seeds, crop protection, and nutrition.

Revolution Foods

School lunch is the focus of this Oakland-based company, founded in 2006. Revolution Foods started working with school lunch programs in the Bay Area to offer nutritious meals.

Since then, the company has expanded to work with 2,500 school and community sites in 400 cities and towns.

"As a mom, I am moved by their mission to create lifelong healthy eaters, and as an investor, I love the unique nature of this asset – they are the only nationally branded school and community meal provider," said Kristin Gunther, vice president at Revolution Growth, an investor in Revolution Foods.

Revolution Foods partners include The YMCA and Boys and Girls Club of America, and offers everything from onsite meal prep to support on the point-of-service systems used.

Sweetgreen

Since launching in 2007, Sweetgreen has become a mainstay in many metro offices at lunchtime. Investors have taken notice. In the fall, Sweetgreen announced $200 million in new funding in a round led by Fidelity Investments.

It's now valued at over $1 billion and has raised $365 million in total.

"Sweetgreen is transforming fast casual food by working with local providers to deliver healthy, fresh, and constantly changing seasonal salads," Revolution Growth's Gunther said. "They are leveraging technology to streamline the supply chain, track crops, and remove the friction out of customers' ordering and food-delivery experience."

Caribou Biosciences

Caribou Biosciences are a Berkeley, California-based company which is revolutionizing gene-editing based on the findings of its co-founder Jennifer Doudna, who holds a doctorate degree in biomedical science. Doudna's work in developing the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing (enzymes from bacteria that control microbial immunity) has been described as one of the most important discoveries in the history of biology.

As a result, Caribou are pioneering new methods to resolve both human and animal health issues which could revolutionize farming and agriculture, according to Adam Anders, partner at Anterra Capital.

"Caribou is internally focused on advancing new oncology treatments but is excited to offer its CRISPR technology to the food sector," said President and CEO Rachel Haurwitz in emailed comments. The company last raised $30 million in series B funding in 2016 led by Anterra.

BlueNalu

BlueNalu was set up to provide a more sustainable solution to the fishing industry. Alternative proteins is a booming space, and the company aims to develop seafood products directly from fish cells.

Many companies have entered the industry but have struggled to scale sufficiently to meet the challenges faced with over fishing and species decline in the world's oceans. BlueNalu aimed to overcome those hurdles by putting more experienced food industry figures at the helm.

"Time is not on our side, and [we felt] a sense of urgency would push the effort forward more quickly," said Chris Kerr, partner at New Crop Capital and a co-founder of BlueNalu.

The company raised $4.5 million last year and recently moved to larger facilities in San Diego. BlueNalu plans to develop products from finned fish, crustaceans and mollusks that are over-fished, primarily imported, and difficult to farm-raise, according to its website.