Amsterdam-based investment company Invest-NL and Wageningen-based StartLife, a startup accelerator, announced that they have strategically partnered to work on the development and growth of startups and scale-ups that focus on the transition towards a sustainable, climate-neutral food system.
The partners will work together to create fresh initiatives that will support and improve an entrepreneurial climate for impact-driven entrepreneurs.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the global agrifood chain presently uses 30 per cent of the energy that is available. Hence, there is a huge potential to increase the food chain’s energy efficiency through the use of alternative proteins, precision agriculture, and circular food technology.
However, it takes a lot of work to get these technologies ready for widespread commercial use, and hence makes them unattractive to most investors. As a result, few solutions achieve their full potential and emergent innovations lose momentum early.
Aim of the partnership
Established by the Dutch Government in 2020, Invest-NL is an impact investor committed to businesses and projects that will make the Netherlands more sustainable and innovative. As the Netherlands’ National Promotional Institution (NPI), its strategic focus lies in speeding up the transition towards a carbon-neutral and circular economy.
Liz Duijves, Investment Associate at Invest-NL, says, “Our partnership with StartLife allows us to build on its 12 years of experience in the startup scene and its large, global community of startups, corporates and investors in the food and agriculture sector.”
“They are in close contact with many early-stage agrifoodtech startups, know what obstacles hinder the implementation of new technologies and have good insights on what’s needed to overcome these hurdles. We believe that this partnership will provide a fast lane to make the transformation of our food system better financeable,” adds Duijves.
StartLife is inviting startups and scale-ups with unique needs for growing their sustainable (agrifood) technology.
Jan Meiling, MD of StartLife, says, “Together we will facilitate growth and open up opportunities by creating meaningful projects and supporting a flourishing agrifood ecosystem. We have already committed to enhance existing initiatives, like the international F&A Next summit and the Fast Lane programme for food & ag pioneers, and will jointly represent the Dutch agrifood ecosystem abroad. We are also working towards a new and unique venture building programme that is set to launch in 2023, designed to build ventures from scratch.”
Brief about StartLife
In 2010, Wageningen University & Research co-founded StartLife, a startup accelerator in the agrifoodtech industry. Its goal is to provide entrepreneurs with the tools they need to launch and expand technologies that help create a sustainable food system. In order to do this, the accelerator offers a wide range of services, such as assistance with company growth, access to capital, business mentorship, and a global network of influential figures in agriculture and food.
StartLife has supported more than 400 startups that develop technological innovations in the domains of foodtech and agtech.
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