AgriFoodTech startups across the Asia-Pacific are making big waves in the 2024 FoodTech 500 rankings, driving innovation in sustainable food production, alternative proteins, precision farming, and more. With 61 APAC companies among the finalists, the region is quickly becoming a global powerhouse shaping the future of food.
The FoodTech 500 is back for 2025 with unprecedented global impact! This seventh edition offers enhanced value propositions for AgriFoodTech innovators, from elite recognition to access to 20,000+ industry professionals. With over 10,500+ applications received across six editions and reach spanning 180+ countries, join the definitive ranking of food technology leaders driving industry transformation.
The 2024 FoodTech 500 rankings are out! Discover key industry trends, investment insights, and sustainability impacts from the world’s most innovative startups.
Ahead of the 2024 FoodTech 500 rankings unveiling, our ambassadors provide expert perspectives on navigating the 73% drop in global investments, the rise of transformative technologies like precision fermentation and AI-driven agriculture, and the critical role of diversity in leadership. Despite current challenges, these industry leaders remain optimistic about FoodTech's potential to drive sustainable transformation in our global food system.
Since its inception, the FoodTech 500 has served as a vital pulse check for the global AgriFoodTech ecosystem. Analysis of the FoodTech 500 ranking over the years reveals transformative shifts: the rise of biotech innovation, increased focus on climate action, growing founder diversity, and evolving funding patterns. Get a sneak peek of the 2024 results and what they tell us about the future of food.
The AgriFoodTech sector had a tough year in 2024, facing unprecedented challenges that continue to reshape the industry landscape. Some companies that were once at the top of their game succumbed to the economic downturn. We looked into some of the biggest AgriFoodTech struggles of 2024, what’s behind the failures, and what are the key learnings to help guide the industry’s future.
Forward Fooding’s FoodTech 500 Ambassadors Program celebrates global innovators in the AgriFoodTech space. Learn about the leaders fostering a sustainable future for food.
Discover how the AgriFoodTech sector is shifting focus towards agricultural biotechnology, precision agriculture, and sustainable food innovation, despite a recent dip in global investments.
The Swiss FoodTech ecosystem is emerging as a global powerhouse, driving AgriFood innovation with a strong R&D foundation, skilled talent, and supportive regulatory frameworks.
24BIO is empowering African farmers with digital tools to enhance sustainability, streamline procurement, and reduce food waste, while expanding their impact through innovative agricultural solutions.
Discover the transformative trends in the FoodTech industry as investments diversify and Europe emerges as a hub for AgriFoodTech innovation. Learn about the current market dynamics and future projections in our new report series, "Decoding the FoodTech Transition."
The UK’s AgriFoodTech industry has seen remarkable growth, establishing itself as a European leader and a global innovator. With over 470 companies in London alone, this sector is rivaling major tech hubs worldwide. This article explores the factors behind this growth, compares the UK with other markets, and highlights key strengths and potential obstacles.
In Part 2 of this blog series, we listed the companies that debuted into this year's list from these Activities: Next-Gen [...]
In its 5th edition, the FoodTech 500 continues its tradition of celebrating the newest additions to the startup landscape, highlighting [...]
After highlighting the top European hubs in Part 1 of Zooming in on European Startups [...]
European startups represents more than 50% of the total finalists in the 2023 FoodTech 500 rankings. As we zoom [...]
Five editions and 9,000+ applications from global AgriFoodTech companies later, it is a great honour for us at Forward [...]
Gone are the days when food packaging was merely a means to an end - a functional necessity with little [...]
Courtesy Chi Botanic As science and technology continue to break ground in the agricultural space, plant cell culture, which has [...]
This year, we were glad to be a strategic partner of the Big Meet event organized by our friends from [...]
Last week, we proudly participated in the 2023 Food 4 Future exhibition held in Bilbao, Spain. This event brought together [...]
This article aims at shedding light on the Cellular agriculture landscape and what makes us believe that we are also expecting a wave of acquisitions in this sector in the near term. As you may know, cellular agriculture (also called ‘cell-based’or ‘lab-grown’) is an innovative technology that has the potential to revolutionize the way we produce and consume food, especially meat, dairy, and fish.
The FoodTech industry is a rapidly changing landscape, marked by continuous progress and innovation year after year. As part of our European Unveiling 2022 FoodTech 500 Tour, this time we collaborated with Kitchentown to host an event in Berlin on the 20th of April, bringing together members of the German FoodTech community to celebrate the release of this year's list.
We are excited to announce the official winners of the 2022 FoodTech 500, recognizing the top companies shaping the future of food! After carefully reviewing all submitted applications, we are proud to share the complete ranking of all 500 companies.
Cellular agriculture, also known as "cell-based" or "lab-grown" foods for the development of animal-based protein, is an emerging technology that [...]
To continue with our European Unveiling 2022 FoodTech 500 Tour, we also hosted an event on March 22nd at our London FoodTech Innovation Hub, where we brought together some part of the UK FoodTech community to celebrate the launch of this year's FoodTech 500 list.
Vertical farming has been lauded for its potential to provide fresh produce throughout the year, regardless of location or climate. However, recent challenges have presented the industry with some obstacles to overcome. A reduction in venture funding and rising energy costs have led to a series of setbacks, including layoffs, delayed farm construction, and even business closures. In the following interview with Sepehr Achard, Chief Executive Officer of iGrow News, a leading news provider for indoor farming and controlled environment agriculture, we understand what has led us to this point and what to expect moving forward.
We are excited to announce the official winners of the 2022 FoodTech 500, recognizing the top companies shaping the future of food! After carefully reviewing all submitted applications, we are proud to share the complete ranking of all 500 companies.
As the industry continues to expand, the individual companies within it have demonstrated remarkable growth, some collecting $100 million or more. To recognize these pioneers and their exceptional work, we've introduced the $100 million Club, a new classification within the FoodTech 500 that gathers inspiring companies with $100 million in raised funding or more under their belt.
What if we could grow a gram of pure protein extract inside a plant? Molecular farming proposes to do just that. Plant molecular farming (PMF) is an application of biotechnology that traditionally involves using genetically modified plants to produce useful products such as pharmaceuticals, industrial enzymes and vaccines. Genetically modified plants are used as “bioreactors” to produce the desired products, which can then be harvested and purified for use. Recently, the sector started to make headlines as a few companies gained prominence for their use of this technology in the food industry
On 17 January 2023, the global FoodTech Challenge (FTC) announced four winners for the competition’s second edition during an awards ceremony at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW). After a shortlisting process that started in 2022, which saw Forward Fooding involved as an outreach partner and participating in the early stages of the selection process, a judging committee awarded a pooled prize of up to US $2 Million to Aquagrain, Orbisk, Revoltech, and Sustainable Planet. These companies will now receive funding to scale up their new businesses in the UAE.
The 4th edition of FoodTech 500 is taking off and we are excited to partner with NEOM for the third consecutive year to support the best international AgriFoodTech entrepreneurs.
The alternative protein landscape is rapidly evolving. With new ingredients and technologies being employed to create products that are increasingly similar to their animal-based counterparts, entrepreneurs are pushing the boundaries of what we eat. However, regulatory challenges can sometimes stand in the way of commercial release and expansion, hindering entrepreneurs' growth plans.
In the wake of a global energy crisis brought on by the war in Ukraine, Western countries are once again turning to oil and gas producers in the Gulf in order to diversify their energy sources. Countries like Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar are back in the spotlight, with new opportunities to remain pivotal players in the decades to come. But energy isn't the only commodity reshaping the Gulf states. There is a food crisis looming on the horizon, and with it the threat of an uncertain future.
It's no secret that 2022 was a challenging year for the food system. Following the shockwaves of Covid-19, supply chains were once again tested and made to bear the weight of the war in Ukraine. The global economic crisis also impacted Venture Capital markets and the FoodTech sector was no exception. We look back on what we've learned in the past 12 months and think about what it all means for the year to come.
Last year marked a major milestone for the FoodTech 500. Thousands of entrepreneurs worldwide sent in their applications (2,253, to be precise), more than in any previous year. The outcome of the 2022 edition was just as impressive. Once again, this year we received 2,000+ applications from 82 countries, representing a broad range of solutions across all areas of FoodTech.
On 23rd Nov 2022, we hosted our last Meetup of the year in our Barcelona Food & FoodTech Innovation Hub, in partnership with Talent Garden. We brought together a mix of FoodTech startups, investors and experts to deep dive into Food & Biotechnology: The Future of nutrition. We enjoyed sharing, learning, and enabling meaningful connections between like-minded people working to make our Food System more sustainable.
This wave of interest in Vertical/Indoor farming solutions could be attributed, albeit partially, to rising concern about climate change’s impacts on food production. Vertical farming is seen by many as a compelling alternative to traditional resource-intensive agriculture. Its sustainability promises, paired with the growing demand for shorter, more reliable supply chains, have contributed to the sector gaining traction over the years.
On 20th Oct 2022, we were pleased to host a buzzy #FoodTechMeetup at our London FoodTech Innovation Hub in partnership with Huckletree, for the launch of our latest report on the UK AgriFoodTech Ecosystem.
On 12th Oct 2022, we hosted our third FoodTech Meetup in our Milan Hub, in partnership with Talent Garden. After our last event dedicated to Alternative Protein, we decided to deep dive into the Foodservice tech area.
Agriculture is perhaps the sector that has been and will suffer the most from climate change. With 72% of all water withdrawals used by agriculture and 12 million hectares of land lost to desertification, land degradation and drought every year, a revolution in the primary sector is needed in order to be able to face upcoming difficult years.
According to EIT Food, it is estimated that by 2054, roughly 11% of our global protein consumption will consist of edible insects. This is not just a sign of preferences that evolve along with our world, but also a coordinated response to a collective concern.
The good news is: the AgriFoodTech investor landscape is changing fast, and improving. Over the past couple of years, we have seen a lot more specialist VCs emerging, not only with a true knowledge of the sector, but also with a very holistic approach when it comes to their investment thesis.
While FoodTech startups started burgeoning in the early 2010s, investments in the space only took off in 2016, as evidenced in our FoodTech Data Navigator. Indeed 93% of the $163B invested in the sector to date were deployed over the past 5 years, and this is also when 70% of all AgriFoodTech companies were founded.
On 22nd June 2022, we were super excited to host in our Barcelona Food & FoodTech Innovation Hub, in partnership with Talent Garden. We brought together a mix of FoodTech startups, investors and experts to deep dive on the topic and we had a great turnout of over 80+ people coming from all over Spain and beyond. We absolutely enjoyed sharing, learning, and enabling meaningful connections among like-minded people who want to build a more efficient and sustainable food supply chain.
Since the crisis began in February, Ukrainian farms and ports have been disrupted and economic sanctions have been imposed on Russia.
Where they are, what they do, and who are the next ones? Two years ago, we created the FoodTech [...]
We are thrilled to reveal to you this year's FoodTech 500 finalists! Download the white paper here and discover who [...]
Meal kits – the halfway house between takeaway and supermarket shopping. Whilst the industry was growing in popularity over the [...]
By 2050, we’ll need to produce 70% more food to feed over 9 billion mouths. Luckily, a wide range of [...]
At Forward Fooding we advise and consult with corporates and investors on how corporate-startup collaboration can lead to creating a [...]
A brief message from our CEO This is a brief message to support our FoodTech community during Covid 19 times. [...]
Meet the FoodTech 500 top 10 startups that made Forward Fooding's 2019 FoodTech 500 list, representing every sector of the [...]
An interview with Ruben Miranda, the founder of MIFOOD, one of Forward Fooding’s top 500 Food Tech startups. Ruben [...]
An interview with Javier Gamboa, founder of Biogenetics, one of Forward Fooding’s top 500 Food Tech startups. Javier Gamboa, [...]
An interview with Alessandro Savelli and Chris Rennoldson, founders of Pasta Evangelists, one of Forward Fooding’s top 500 Food Tech [...]
After looking into the Italian startup ecosystem overall in the first part of this article, let zoom into what matters to us [...]
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