Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley member, AgroSustain, has secured a FIT Tech Growth loan, completing the startup’s CHF 4.8 Million Series A funding round and laying the foundations for imminent market launch.

Food waste: a growing issue

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that approximately one-third of global food production – worth around USD 1.66 trillion – goes to waste annually. Storage and transportation of perishable crops has become a key challenge in the food industry and results in a significant proportion of these annual losses.

AgroSustain, a Swiss startup founded in 2018, has set out to tackle this issue by developing a biological & natural farm-to-fork solution for sustainable plant protection. Their 100% natural innovative coating extends crop freshness by more than 20 days, while its biological fungicides protect a broad number of agronomically important crops - like grapes and wheat - from molds that may lead them to spoil.

The journey so far

AgroSustain has developed and certified its natural fungicides and coating and has filed four patents. The team has also signed over 15 pilot trials with some of the largest European and Swiss retailers and wholesalers, and set up its production facilities. The team behind AgroSustain is now planning to launch their first product - natural coating for extending the shelf-life of fruits and vegetables this March, in partnership with two well-established wholesalers and retailers. AgroSustain's second product – a natural fungicide – is currently undergoing efficacy studies at the field scale.

Over the past three years, AgroSustain’s team grew from two co-founders to twelve employees. The startup has received support from numerous programs - including BRIDGE, Venture Kick and Horizon2020 – EIC grant, to the tune of CHF 4,8 Million. In addition to non-dilutive funding, AgroSustain also secured over CHF 5 Million in three rounds of investments, including a FIT Tech Seed loan in 2019 that helped the company to strengthen its product development, hire top-class researchers and build its unique, highly effective natural coating.

What's next?

The funds from this new FIT Tech Growth loan complete the startup’s CHF 4.8 Million Series A funding round closed in July 2021 and will enable AgroSustain to bootstrap the commercial rollout of its natural coating and continue work on its biological and natural fungicides. The team is also planning to hire a Head of Sales and two field technicians to strengthen their client traction and attract new customers.

AgroSustain's CEO, Olga Dubey, said: "We're happy to receive the FIT Growth Loan that provides financial support and gives a credibility stamp for our performance. We're now actively looking to connect with players active in the supply chain of fresh fruits and vegetables, who are motivated to extend the shelf-life of their products using natural solutions. Please do get in touch if you'd like to collaborate."

Find out more on AgroSustain’s website: www.agrosustain.ch 

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This week, Nestlé announced the creation of Nestlé Institute of Agricultural Sciences. Focusing on plant science, dairy livestock and agricultural systems, it will translate novel agricultural science into concrete applications and identify the most promising technologies to implement at farm level.

Translating science into concrete solutions

Transitioning towards a regenerative food system requires large-scale changes in the way agricultural raw materials are produced and sourced. To translate novel agricultural science into concrete applications and to identify the most promising agricultural technologies, Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley member Nestlé announced today the creation of the Nestlé Institute of Agricultural Sciences.

This new institute will focus on the areas of plant science, dairy livestock and agricultural systems science. In close collaboration with internal and external partners, it will assess and combine science-based solutions to improve the nutritional and sensorial qualities and the environmental impact of agricultural raw materials.

Stefan Palzer, Nestlé CTO and Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley's Vice-President, said: "Our transition towards a regenerative food system is enabled by agricultural science and new agricultural technologies. The new institute will accelerate the translation of science into concrete solutions that can be implemented at farm level, to support farmers globally in improving their environmental footprint, in reducing food and nutrient losses, and in better adapting to climate change while ensuring the quality of the raw materials they produce." 

Building on strong foundations

The institute builds on Nestlé's existing work and expertise in agricultural science, with numerous programs already being implemented. Nestle's plant science experts have, for example, been contributing to the company's sustainable cocoa and coffee sourcing plans – the Nestlé Cocoa Plan and the Nescafé Plan - including scientific discoveries such as the recently announced high-yield, drought and disease resistant coffee varieties.

Nestlé experts are also working on identifying the most suitable pulses and grains to provide low carbon, plant-based alternatives to meat, seafood and dairy. This strong focus on plant science will be further strengthened and extended to additional crops. The institute will accelerate the work with external partners to contribute to reducing emissions in dairy farming, to develop regenerative agriculture practices, and to improve biodiversity and soil health. It will also explore new approaches to upcycling agricultural side streams to reduce nutrient loss and food waste along the agricultural value chain.

Isabelle Bureau-Franz, Head of Nestlé Research, said: "The work in agricultural sciences will complement our broad expertise at Nestlé Research, ranging from food safety to health science, material science and packaging. We will leverage our scientific breadth to drive holistic approaches, contributing to concrete solutions and innovation applied throughout the value chain, including in products."

Working across the ecosystem

The institute will work closely with academic institutions and research organizations, start-ups, industry partners and farmers to assess and develop science-based solutions and adapt them for implementation and scale-up across the company’s supply chain, while having a positive impact on the livelihoods and incomes of farmers. It will rely on new and existing collaborations, such as the research program with fellow Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley member ETHZ to reduce the carbon footprint of agricultural products.

Jeroen Dijkman, Head of the Institute of Agricultural Sciences, said: "At the institute we will screen a wide variety of science-based agricultural solutions and assess their potential for reducing the environmental footprint of key agricultural raw materials. Together with our research and industry partners we want to bring the most promising approaches and solutions to farmers and contribute to their transition to regenerative practices with scalable and impactful applications."

About the institute
The institute will be part of Nestlé's global research organization, based in state-of-the-art facilities in Lausanne, Switzerland and will be formally inaugurated later this year. It will also include the company’s plant science unit in France, as well as existing cocoa, coffee, and dairy research farms based in Ecuador, Côte d'Ivoire, Thailand and Switzerland.

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