AgriTech and Food Systems Startups

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Jay&Joy

France

Jay&Joy is the first plant-based creamery in France, specializing in artisan vegan cheeses. Founded in 2015, the company uses traditional fermentation and ripening techniques to create a wide range of dairy-free products using organic cashews and almonds. In 2025, it acquired rival Les Nouveaux Affineurs (LNA) to further scale its production and presence in Europe and the UK.

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Finally Foods

Israel

Finally Foods is an Israeli molecular farming startup that genetically engineers potatoes to produce casein, the primary group of dairy proteins responsible for the melt, stretch, and foaming properties of cheese and milk. Founded in 2024 by CEO Dafna Gabbay and CTO Dr Basia Vinocur, the company operates under an exclusive license to Evogene's GeneRator AI platform and claims to be the first molecular farming player to express all four casein sub-units within a single plant cell. It sells casein as a B2B ingredient to dairy and beverage manufacturers, with Israel's Central Bottling Company (CBC Group) as its first commercial partner.

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Aqua Theon Inc.

United States

Aqua Theon Inc. is a seaweed biotechnology company founded in 2019 and headquartered in Hermosa Beach, California. The company develops seaweed-based products including food and beverages (OoMee, MISAKY.TOKYO), edible fluid pods, medical capsules, and alternative plastic containers using proprietary seaweed processing technology, and partners with Japanese industry and research centers to scale applications in health and sustainability.

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VisioLab

Germany

VisioLab is an Osnabrück, Germany-based AI self-checkout company (with a US office in Boston) whose iPad-based systems use computer vision and edge AI to recognise both packaged and unpackaged food items at point of sale — eliminating barcode scanning and infrastructure modifications. Operator-reported data shows up to 70 percent reductions in average transaction times and roughly 10-minute setup by existing staff. Founded in 2019, the company serves corporate dining, higher education, sports and entertainment, and travel and leisure — with anchor deployments at Orlando Magics Kia Center, Inter Miami CFs Nu Stadium, and an ongoing rollout with Live Nation Entertainment.

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Planetary Group

Switzerland

Planetary is a Swiss full-stack fermentation company that builds, owns, and operates biomanufacturing facilities to produce bio-based food ingredients at industrial scale. Its BioBlocks platform spans bioprocess design, scale-up, and manufacturing, with mycoprotein commercialization via a nationwide ALDI Suisse launch at price parity and ongoing roll-outs across Europe under its B2B Libre brand. The company licenses its sugar-to-protein upcycling technology to agro-industrial partners in sucrose-rich regions and operates industrial-scale production in Aarberg, Switzerland.

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Afresh

United States

Afresh is a San Francisco-based AI platform for the grocery industry, founded in 2017 by Matt Schwartz, Nathan Fenner, and Volodymyr Kuleshov. Its software orchestrates store-level ordering, inventory management, production planning, and distribution-center buying across fresh, center store, frozen, and general merchandise. Afresh operates in more than 12,500 departments across 40 U.S. states and partners with grocers including Albertsons Companies, Meijer, Stater Bros., and Wakefern.

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Harva

United States

Harva (formerly Supply Pay) builds an AI-native ERP and embedded invoice-financing platform for fresh-produce and broader perishable-goods distributors. The single platform combines real-time inventory visibility, lot-level traceability meeting FDA FSMA Section 204 requirements, a built-in general ledger controllable via natural language, and embedded invoice financing that shortens 30-40 day cashflow cycles for cash-intensive distributor businesses. Headquartered in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas near the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge — North America's top land port of entry for fresh produce — Harva was founded by William Steele (CEO) and George Ayala. The company is live with paying customers and provided more than $12 million in trade liquidity to its distributors last year.

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AuX Labs

Canada

AuX Labs is a Toronto-based food technology startup using precision fermentation to produce recombinant casein, the structural protein behind cheese melt and stretch. The company leverages existing global brewing capacity to scale animal-free dairy proteins at price points that compete with conventional dairy, and is targeting foodservice partners such as pizzerias and cafes for its first launches. AuX Labs self-affirmed its casein ingredient as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) in April 2025.

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Cosaic (Cultivated Biosciences)

Switzerland

Cosaic — formerly Cultivated Biosciences (rebranded April 2025) — is a Swiss food-tech company that ferments non-GMO oleaginous yeast strains to produce Cosaic Neo, a single multifunctional ingredient that delivers creaminess, stability, and emulsification for dairy-free, clean-label food and beverage formulations. Cosaic Neo composition is roughly 8-15% protein, 45-60% fat, and 25-45% fibre, replacing single-purpose emulsifiers derived from dairy, eggs, or industrial plant-based formulations. Applications include RTD protein shakes, coffee creamers, non-dairy milks, mayo, sauces, and creamy liqueurs. Led by co-founder and CEO Tomas Turner; strategic commercialisation partnership with Ingredion announced November 2025.