Business2 min
Zerodha's Rainmatter backs farm-waste startup AltM as food-tech cash flows worldwide
From Indian crop residue to Starbucks breakfast sandwiches, this week's agrifood deals show where the money is heading and what could change on your plate.
Zerodha's Rainmatter has backed AltM, an Indian startup that deals with agricultural waste, in a funding round reported at $10.3 million. It was the headline Indian deal in AgFunderNews' latest agrifood roundup, and it points to growing investor interest in what happens to farm leftovers.
The idea is easy to grasp. Farming produces a lot of residue, and startups like AltM want to turn that burden into something useful. The source roundup gives no further details on AltM's products, so we will not guess at them here.
Elsewhere, smaller bets landed across the world. Brazil's Vereda raised a R$30 million seed round. UK-based Virdi raised €2.6 million to turn pollution into everyday products. US startup Kodiact raised $2.5 million to help manufacturers simulate raw-material shocks. Swiss backer Venture Kick put €164,000 into Apolarion, which is working on a plasma-based seed treatment.
Big companies are making moves too. Cargill is backing regenerative agriculture in Germany, Bayer is working with IdeeLab on biofungicides for Brazilian farmers, and Citri&Co and Orth are bringing AI agronomy to fruit operations worldwide. On the funding side, farmland manager Red Reef pulled in $263 million for its second fund. Canada's federal government committed $750 million to controlled-environment growing. The EIB and Ethiopia's Dashen Bank aim to unlock €40 million for green agribusiness and women-led enterprises.
Some news will reach consumers sooner. Starbucks is phasing out its Impossible breakfast sandwich this month, according to Bloomberg. Farmbox Foods has filed for bankruptcy. In the UAE, the first vertical tulip farm in the GCC has launched.
The roundup also has legal and policy stories. A Tokyo court rejected Oishii Farm's patent claims and found it had disparaged MD-Farm. The maker of David Protein won an antitrust lawsuit over the alt-fat EPG. An international coalition of lawyers and advocacy groups has accused JBS of money laundering, and the EPA has dropped its livestock emissions models.
The takeaway is that money is flowing to practical fixes, such as waste reuse, soil health and cheaper inputs, while some flashy consumer products and indoor-farming businesses face tougher times. Indian investors are now part of that shift.
Source: AgFunderNews.
FiledArtificial IntelligenceStartup FundingUnited StatesPollutionStartupsClimate
