What is Spain Foodtech?

Spain FoodTech is a high-performance accelerator program aiming to support the development of Spanish startups in the agri-food-tech field from inception to market launch. 

The agri-food sector plays a strategic role in the Spanish economy, accounting for 9.2% of GDP and 11.9% of employment. It is also experiencing a revolution in the application of technology with more than 400 active Foodtech startups. Therefore, this context pushed for the development of the Spain FoodTech Startups Program. A program promoted by Eatable Adventures and supported by the National Center for Food Technology and Safety (CNTA) and ICEX Spanish government leg for Export and Investment. 

The Program

More than 200 startups applied for the first edition of Spain Foodtech, including foreign entrepreneurs willing to move their headquarters to Spain. However, only 5 finalists were chosen: Cocuus, H2hydroponics, Innomy, Moa foodtech and Proppos. They received a personalized 6-months acceleration plan with access to technological support from CNTA. Indeed, they focused on achieving technological development and consolidation. During this period, the startups saw their business models reinforced and evaluated, their technological applications reformulated and tested. Additionally, they built a proper go-to-market plan, and received help in their search for funding in order to scale. 

All these efforts have resulted in a boost for the startup’s valuation, multiplied by more than 6 times. Moreover, an average valuation of 7,5m € reflected in the resulting funding rounds.

The Startups

Here is an introduction to the 5 finalists:

• COCUUS: presented its MimETHICA platform, designed for large-scale bio-printing of plant-based products analogous to recreate animal protein, from steaks to salmon sashimi.
• PROPPOS AI: applies artificial intelligence and computer vision to offer an unattended Point of Sale solution for food service.
• INNOMY: has developed a range of animal protein substitute products based on the cultivation of mushroom mycelium.
• H2HYDROPONICS: designed and operated hydroponic vertical farming and indoor farming facilities in the most extreme climates. They have launched Atlantic Farms, a concept of local and technological production, which will revolutionize the 4th RANGE salad sector, implementing a sustainable production model in the same communities where it is consumed.
• MOA Foodtech: combines biotechnology and artificial intelligence to convert waste and by-products from the agri-food industry into a ”next-generation protein” with a high nutritional value and is 100% sustainable.

For more information on each startup, visit their websites.

“Several of the Spain Foodtech startups are disruptive at a global level. They are already getting solid traction with leading international investors and corporations. They have managed to generate amazing intellectual property which is having a strong social impact. It is a quantitative and qualitative success, and the value of the startups has multiplied by 6.3 during the program” affirms José Luis Cabañero Founder and CEO of Eatable Adventures. 

The Spain Foodtech program is run annually. Applications for the next cohort are open for the 2022 edition on spainfoodtech.es.

The deadline to apply is September 30th. 

More articles here.