PhenOlives raises $270K from OurCrowd to turn olive waste into flour
What's the deal? PhenOlivesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, an Israeli food-tech startup that converts olive by-products into commercial ingredients, has secured a $270,000 investment from OurCrowd as part of a $1M fundraising round. The company also appointed Itzik Saig, a former Nestlé CEO, as chairman of the board.
PhenOlives recently launched what it calls the world's first commercial-scale production line that turns olive pomace — a waste product from olive oil production — into market-ready olive flour.
The funding will support global go-to-market efforts, with targets of securing orders for more than 100 tons of olive flour in 2026. The company also plans to operate its Israel-based system at full capacity and select its first European mill for a 2027 installation.
Why now? The investment comes as PhenOlives shifts from R&D to commercialisation. With its production line operational, the company needs capital to scale operations and enter new markets — particularly in Europe, where olive oil production generates enormous volumes of pomace waste.
Saig's appointment adds food-industry credibility at a critical moment. His experience leading major consumer brands could help PhenOlives navigate the complex path from novel ingredient to mainstream adoption.
What could go wrong? Turning agricultural waste into a consumer-facing ingredient is technically promising but commercially unproven at scale. PhenOlives must convince food manufacturers that olive flour is worth integrating into existing supply chains and formulations — a notoriously difficult sell in a conservative industry.
The $270,000 investment, while strategic, is modest. Scaling production across multiple geographies and building sales channels will require significantly more capital.
The signal: OurCrowd's backing is modest in dollar terms but lends credibility as one of Israel's most active venture investors — a useful endorsement as PhenOlives, classified as an early-growth-stage company by Dealroom, tries to bridge the gap between pilot and commercial scale. The appointment of a former chief executive officer of Nestlé, the world's largest food and beverages company, as chairman underscores a deliberate strategy to borrow incumbents' credibility while selling a novel ingredient into a conservative industry.
Read more: worldbakers.com
