On Thursday, 22 June, StartLife hosted a celebration for the startups from our 10th cohort of StartLife Accelerate as well as some startups from StartLife à la Carte. Many connections were made, and seats filled to see what the innovative agrifoodtech startups have to offer.

Many people from the broad StartLife community joined the Demo Day. In total, we had 388 registrations for the hybrid event. Represented in this number were investors, other startups and scaleups, corporates, education, and the media.   

As this Demo Day was the 10th edition, we wanted to make it special by adding some new features. This included a startup expo where the graduating startups each had a stand where visitors could meet the teams and learn about their products and solutions. 

“The day was packed with engaging discussions, inspiring investor brainstorming sessions, and enlightening conversations with innovative start-ups, offering a glimpse into the freshest and most promising AgTech innovation ideas.”
~ Natanja Slager, ICL Group

10th Cohort of Next Generation Agrifoodtech Startups

This edition of StartLife Accelerate kicked off in March and over the last quarter of a year startups have been busy working through our structured curriculum designed to help innovative agrifoodtech startups to grow and attract funding. Topics included in the program were market segmentation, intellectual property, and funding. A total of nine startups took part in this edition of the program, following over 100 applications. Last week marked the end of the program for these startups and the demo day is their day to show off their solution, connect with our community, and celebrate their progress.  

From the program, these startups pitched at the Demo Day on 22 June 2023.  

Yeastime (IT) 

Provides producers deep tech solutions that optimize bioprocesses by reducing the active state of the fermentation by 30%, leading to efficiency in terms of production time, energy consumption, and environmental impact. 

Nano in Green (ARG)

A green synthesis company that through precision fermentation seeks to synthesize functional ingredients to enhance plant-based foods by delivering quality nutrition, new flavor, and different texture giving a new experience. 

Reinvent Protein (NL) 

Offers food and beverage producers soy-free plant protein ingredients for maximum taste, nutrition, and functionality enabled by its proprietary platform of hydrolysis and fermentation technology. 

Sun Bear Biofuture (UK) 

Reimagines farming by blending the natural process of fermentation with modern science and technology to produce a palm oil alternative with all its natural benefits, minus the environmental impact. 

Harmonize (GER) 

Offers a SaaS platform to digitize flavor and help mimic flavors from animal products into plant-based foods enabling the transition into a sustainable diet. 

FarmOn (NL) 

Develops software solutions with cutting-edge AI and ML technology to identify sustainable agricultural practices at scale and their ecological impact. 

Nerit’e (GER) 

Provides cutting-edge technological solutions that enable soil protection and yield optimization through smart, data-based, actionable recommendations to farmers. 

S&DB (NL) 

Enables farmers to plant seed with high precision and grow their (vegetable) crops in a more robust and sustainable way with a secured higher yield through the application of proprietary seed-embedding technology SET that guarantees an optimal germination environment.

“We appreciate the incredible support provided by the program during all these months!”
~ Carolina Aguila, Nano in Green

Pitching Proven Tech 

It was at the Demo Day last spring when we officially announced our StartLife à la Carte program. This is a bespoke program for later-stage startups who don’t necessarily need the whole curriculum our Accelerate program has to offer but could benefit from becoming a part of and connecting with our ecosystem. The following startups presented from this program at the Demo Day.  

Carbominer (UA) 

Climate tech startup that has developed new DAC technology to capture CO₂ from the open air locally, at the place of use. 

FarmTree (NL) 

Develops methods to forecast agro-systems impact, including carbon sequestration, multi-species production, cost-benefit analyses etc. at a different scale.  

Ekolive (GER) 

The first and leading provider of a new ecological bioleaching method for the ecological release of elements and the breakdown of toxic compounds with consecutive production of biostimulants. 

“The vibes, networking and energy have been incredible – thank you, StartLife!”
~ Viktoria Oseyko, Carbominer

Replay The Show 

If you couldn’t follow live, don’t worry. You can now watch the recording of the pitches and Q&A sessions below: