OneThird, an Enschde, Netherlands-based AI-powered food tech company created to address the annual loss of one-third of all food produced due to spoilage, raised $3 million in a late-seed funding round, bringing its total raised to date to $6.1 million.
The round was led by Dutch-based impact investor Pymwymic (an acronym for “Put Your Money Where Your Meaning Is Community”), with participation from Halma Ventures Limited, SHIFT Invest, and Oost NL.
The new funds will be used to scale its technology and operations to expand to new markets and support fresh produce supply chains in North America and Europe as the company works to tackle the $1 trillion lost annually to worldwide food waste due to spoilage.
“Global food waste has an enormous environmental impact; reducing global food waste can help to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions and embolden global food security. One-third of global food produced annually is lost or wasted, which is an astronomical volume given the number of people worldwide who go to bed hungry. Global food waste is both inefficient and a major social justice issue — one that is compounded across multiple touchpoints in the supply chain — from agricultural production all the way to the landfill,” said Marco Snikkers, CEO and founder of OneThird. “The latest seed funding we’ve received will allow us to accelerate the implementation of OneThird’s technology beyond our initial customer base, expand internationally and increase the impact we can create for our customers to help them generate higher ROI, and also meet their sustainability and ESG goals.”
Launched in 2019, OneThird has been quietly building its technology and carefully selecting early customers across the fresh produce supply chain. The company’s AI-powered, near-infrared scanning technology enables growers, food distributors, retailers, and consumers to accurately predict the shelf life of fresh produce and minimize food waste.
The technology currently supports and predicts the shelf life of tomatoes, strawberries, blueberries, and avocados, and will extend to a total of ten types of produce, including grapes, bananas, mangoes, and raspberries by late 2023.
Company: OneThird B.V.
Raised: $3.0M
Round: Late Seed Round
Funding Month: March 2023
Lead Investors: Pymwymic
Additional Investors: Halma Ventures Limited, SHIFT Invest, and Oost NL
Company Website: https://onethird.io/
Software Category: Food Waste Solutions
About the Company: Founded in 2019, OneThird is a food tech startup preventing food loss and food waste by improving cold chain logistics and making anyone a shelf life prediction expert. Its food tech solutions for growers, distributors, and grocery retailers allow for high-accuracy shelf life prediction of produce at any stage of the supply chain — ensuring the right product gets to the right place at the right time. The company has garnered significant media attention since its debut at the 2023 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), where it was voted ‘Best of Show’ by multiple global tier-one media. OneThird is on a mission to address a $1 trillion annual problem — reducing the loss of one-third of all food produced worldwide. Using passion and creativity, OneThird delivers meaningful solutions to improve sustainability efforts, feed those in need, and save customers money.
Source: https://www.prweb.com/releases/2023/3/prweb19241786.htm