SAN FRANCISCO, April 12, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Full Harvest , which solves food waste at the farm level with technology, today announced it has closed a $2 million seed round of financing led by Wireframe Ventures . BBG Ventures , Early Impact Ventures , Impact Engine , Radicle and a collection of high-profile angel investors including Astia and Joanne Wilson also joined the round. Offering the first business-to-business marketplace for the purchase and sale of surplus and imperfectly shaped produce, Full Harvest will use the investment to substantially grow its team and enhance its technology platform.
“We seek out visionaries who deploy transformative technology to create new markets or reinvigorate our most essential industries, and the produce industry is certainly ripe for change,” noted Paul Straub, managing partner and co-founder, Wireframe Ventures. “With an exceptional leadership team and a unique platform approach, Full Harvest is creating a lucrative marketplace for sustainable, affordable produce that makes the most of every harvest.”
To feed nine billion people by 2050 , up to 50 percent more food will need to be produced globally. Yet, the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that more food reaches U.S. landfills and incinerators than any other waste, and 40 percent of all food in the United States goes to waste according to the NRDC . Full Harvest aims to turn the 20 billion pounds of produce that goes to waste each year due to surplus or cosmetic reasons into a new profit center for the industry – helping growers recapture the estimated $10 billion market of lost produce sales while lowering costs for food and beverage companies, as well as consumers.
"Full Harvest is one of those companies that you read about and instantly want to work with. Their mission is exactly what our world needs – minimizing food waste and resources, supporting our farmers, and making organic food more affordable. Our experience with Full Harvest has been absolutely fantastic as the team is passionate about making sure customers have the best experience,” noted Jessica Baxter, produce buyer, purchasing manager and production coordinator at Juice Served Here. "The produce we’ve purchased from Full Harvest has been absolutely beautiful in appearance and taste – it’s hard to believe this is the product that doesn’t make it to retail shelves and gets thrown out because it doesn’t meet appearance standards. I am extremely excited to see the company and its offerings continue to expand so we can do more business together and minimize food waste. This is the future of food – we need to be more resourceful and use all of what we grow."
Led by a team of skilled entrepreneurs and technologists with expansive food and logistics experience, Full Harvest is applying proprietary technology and a new supply chain model to change how the food industry manages surplus produce. Full Harvest already helps some of the largest U.S. farms and top food and beverage companies create new revenue streams, rethink the produce supply chain and eliminate waste.
“All elements of the food chain need to be examined to find ways to reduce waste. Full Harvest is leading the way to address food waste at the farm level by using technology to create large-scale, market-based innovation,” added Ann M. Veneman, Former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.
With the global fruit and vegetable ingredients market projected to grow to $180 billion by 2019 , Full Harvest plans to use the investment to lead the produce industry into a waste-free future. Its marketplace creates a new revenue stream for farmers and lowers the cost of healthy food production, while significantly reducing wasted food and resources.
“Excessive food waste creates an enormous burden on our society, economy and environment. With the knowledge and technology we now have at our fingertips, no food should go to waste,” said Christine Moseley, founder and CEO of Full Harvest. “At Full Harvest, we want to turn the fruits and vegetables that would traditionally be wasted into a win-win for every player in the food supply chain. Our goal is to be the Alibaba of produce – a universal, easy-to-use platform that allows growers, food and beverage companies, and retailers to all benefit from excess farm produce.”
About Full Harvest Full Harvest fills food system gaps, helping growers get the most out of a harvest and food companies save money by bringing farm excess to market. Its B2B platform connects large farms to food and beverage companies to sell discounted, yet high-quality surplus and imperfectly shaped produce that would have otherwise gone to waste. Based in San Francisco for proximity to farming epicenter Salinas, Full Harvest is backed by a collection of top investors and industry leaders. Learn more at www.fullharvest.com .
Media Contact: Erica Camilo Connexa Communications for Full Harvest C: 610.639.5644
