Food waste has become an increasingly recognised environmental issue over the last decade. It’s not only about the ethical factor, but food loss and waste also have many negative economic and environmental impacts.
According to UNEP, “Approximately one-third of all food produced for human consumption gets lost or wasted – around 1.3 billion tonnes every year. This amounts to roughly $680B (approx €578B) in developed countries and $310B (approx €263B) in developing countries, with a carbon footprint of about 3.3 billion tonnes of CO2, which is equivalent to 8 per cent of global greenhouse emissions.”
What is Food Waste?
The term ‘Food waste’ refers to food that is of good quality and fit for consumption but does not get consumed due to a slew of reasons. At times it can be due to negligence or a conscious decision to throw food away.
Mission to reduce food waste
Founded in 2018 by Daniel Khachab, Julian Hammer, and Rogerio da Silva Yokomizo, Choco, a Berlin-based startup is on a mission to reduce food waste on a global scale and to make the food supply chain more transparent and sustainable.
Choco provides a digital platform connecting restaurants and their suppliers in order to optimise the food supply chain.
Raised €84.8M
Recently, Choco raised $100M (approx €84.8M) funding in Series B round, bringing the company’s funding to a total of $171.5M (approx €145.6M).
The round was led by New York-based growth equity firm Left Lane Capital, joined by venture capital and private equity firm Insight Partners, with further participation from existing investors Coatue Management and Bessemer Venture Partners.
The Series B round comes over a year after the company raising $63.7M (approx €54M) funding in a Series A round.
Based out of New York, Left Lane Capital is a growth equity firm that invests in high-growth internet & consumer technology companies that build long-lasting customer relationships.
Fund utilisation
The funding will help Choco to grow its existing customer footprint in its six current markets: the United States, Germany, France, Spain, Austria, and Belgium. Further, the company is planning to expand into several new markets and double its headcount by end of the year.
Provides digital platform
The German company provides a digital ordering workflow and communication tool for restaurants and suppliers to facilitate food procurement.
Choco says its technology enables more efficient food procurement processes and reduces operational expenses between restaurants and suppliers. This in turn will help to increase margins in the foodservice sector and combat climate change.
At present, the company has over ten thousand active restaurants and suppliers on its platform across the US and Europe helping them to digitise the food supply chain and enable more efficient food procurement processes and business growth.
Growth and hires
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company has witnessed a growing demand for its service with platform transaction volume quadrupling in the last year.
Recently, the company has also made key hires, starting with the recent hire of Vikas Gupta (ex-Uber, Facebook) as CTO. With Gupta, Choco will continue adding new functionalities that respond and cater to real-time changes in the food services industry.
“Food supply chains across the globe have been stress tested in the last 15 months due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This financing round enables us to build the technological backbone to make global food systems resilient, flexible, and less wasteful. We have a big mission: to eradicate food waste – and this capital allows us to expand globally, assemble a world-class team and deliver a product and service that is indispensable for restaurants and suppliers looking to operate more profitably, efficiently, and sustainably,” says Daniel Khachab, Choco CEO.