Food technology startups globally saw more activity than ever before in Q3’15, with the deal count climbing to 74 deals, which together raised $1.25B. The quarter was the second-highest ever for funding, and was up 55% on a dollars basis and 111% on a deals basis over the same quarter a year before.
The food tech category covers tech-enabled companies specifically involved with the preparation, assembly, and/or delivery of food products to consumers including prepared meal delivery companies (like Munchery and Sprig), online ordering platforms (Delivery Hero, Ele.me), meal kit delivery companies (Blue Apron, Plated), among others. It does not include restaurant tech or companies marketing traditional food products.
The rise of the on-demand consumer, as well as global adoption of e-commerce, has driven the surge in activity over the past 2 years, with companies across North America, Europe, and Asia all seeing significant funding.
In fact, the 5 largest deals in Q3’15 all went to international companies, led by China-based online food ordering platform Ele.me’s $630M Series F financing, which valued the company at $3B.
Geography of food tech investments
While the US has dominated food tech investment activity over the past few years, India has seen an explosion thus far this year with 45 deals through Q3’15. This includes larger financings to grocery delivery startups such as BigBasket and PepperTap, as well as food ordering startups including TinyOwl and Swiggy.
Active investors in food tech
500 Startups has been the most active VC in food tech since 2013 on a unique company basis, with multiple early-stage investments largely focused in the United States including Bento. Accel Partners, Index Ventures, and Slow Ventures round out the top 3, with Accel backing Deliveroo and Sprig, Index Ventures investing in Good Eggs as well as Zesty, and Slow Ventures investing in Postmates and Plated, among others.
| Rank | Investor | Rank | Investor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 500 Startups | 5 | Bessemer Venture Partners |
| 2 | Accel Partners | 5 | SAIF Partners |
| 3 | Index Ventures | 5 | BoxGroup |
| 3 | Slow Ventures | 5 | Sequoia Capital India |
| 5 | Phenomen Ventures | 5 | East Ventures |
| 5 | Sequoia Capital China | 5 | SV Angel |
| 5 | Great Oaks Venture Capital | 5 | First Round Capital |
| 5 | Andreessen Horowitz | 5 | IDG Capital Partners |
| 5 | Khosla Ventures |
Image credit: Mark Turnauckas // Flickr
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