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Wageningen startups boosted by venture capital Future Food Fund
For all agrifood startups, including Wageningen spin-offs, venture capital is crucial to develop their innovations. Wageningen University & Research (WUR) cooperates with Future Food Fund to foster the growth of agrifood startups and stimulate breakthrough innovation. Future Food Fund, the Dutch environmental investor, recently celebrated the first closing of its second fund, FFF II, at 20M and expects a second and final closing at 50M in summer 2023.
“The fund's network helps startups to achieve their social and sustainable goals. By actually bringing products to market, they can accelerate transitions and increase impact." Sebastiaan Berendse, Director Value Creation, WUR.
Besides WUR, impact-driven entrepreneurs, family businesses and regional development agencies Oost NL and NOM participate in the fund. Future Food Fund has an international impact network that realises transformation in the most pressing food & agri themes such as smart farming, regenerative agriculture, bio-based ingredients and alternative proteins.
Ensuring the sustainability of our planet means that many sectors need to transform dramatically in the coming years in order to mitigate the steadily growing effects of climate change. Governments, industries and consumers must jointly tackle this massive challenge and venture capital investing in innovation and change can play an important role in the transformation needed.
Investing in agrifood tech is quickest way to positively impact the transformation of our food systems, we see it as our responsibility to contribute to that
The Netherlands and specifically Wageningen is very well positioned as a leader in the food & agri transformation. Knowledge institutes, research and experience, as well as attractive ecosystems and networks are readily available and contribute to the growth of fast growing startups and scale-ups.