Swiss venture studio FOOD FOUNDERS raises €4M to build foodtech on industry demand
What's the deal? FOOD FOUNDERS StudioDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a Zurich-based venture studio that builds B2B food and beverage technology companies, has closed an oversubscribed €4 million round. The round was backed by family offices and angel investors, and will fund its next two startups.
What's the endgame? The studio inverts the usual foodtech playbook: it works with manufacturers to pin down real problems, then hunts for technology to solve them before recruiting founders. "We build startups for the purpose of bringing that technology to the market," said chief executive officer and co-founder Giacomo Cattaneo.
How it works: Expert boards assess technical performance, the commercial case, and whether the intellectual property can anchor a company. The studio has scouted more than 100 technologies and advanced nine to validation.
Its first venture, SentiaNova, uses plant protein technology licensed from a European university to remove off-flavours from pulse proteins at the source. Within a year of launch, it has made samples available, engaged the market, and is working toward commercial production while closing its own round.
Why now? FOOD FOUNDERS is also widening its technology search beyond universities to startups and corporate R&D teams, including stalled programmes — what Cattaneo calls "IP that deserves a second chance." He argues shrinking in-house R&D budgets are forcing large companies to source innovation externally.
The studio is avoiding capital-heavy areas like fermentation and cultivated meat, focusing instead on improving taste, texture, affordability, and nutrition. "We want to be fast. We want to work with what the industry needs right now," Cattaneo said.
The signal: The round lands in a selective market. European foodtech startups raised €401 million in the first half of 2026, nearly 18% more year on year, but the number of rounds fell 12% — a sign capital is concentrating in fewer bets. FOOD FOUNDERS' wager is that science matched to proven demand stands a better chance than technology built to excite investors alone.
Read more: fei-online.com
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
