Leafood raises $6.75m to develop a vertical farming network

• The round was led by Niels Peter Pretzmann, founder of organic farm Farmer's Circle and hospitality hub Baltic Food Republic, alongside YesHealth Group and another private investor.
• Leafood plans to raise an additional $2 million over the summer.
• YesHealth Group is an important player in vertical farming, operating several farms for commercial, research and development purposes, including Europe's largest vertical farm, Nordic Harvest, in Denmark.
• The Leafood project, which will also be one of Europe's largest vertical farms, will see YesHealth Group's technologies applied in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Poland.
• Construction will take place in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius and is slated for completion by Q1 2023.
• Leafood's products are set to hit the market in late spring 2023. They will target the retail industry and supply to the HORECA (Hotel/Restaurant/Catering) sector of the food industry.
• Leafood aims to produce 1,000 kilograms of leafy greens daily and around 400 tonnes a year. The company is keen to localize leafy green supply chains for urban dwellers across the Baltic region.

Why it matters

Since vertical farming involves growing crops inside environments where irrigation, lighting, temperature, and other elements are completely controlled, the method checks a lot of boxes when it comes to food production in Northern European countries. 

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Photo: YesHealth iFarm headquarters in Taoyuan, Taiwan. Image credit: YesHealth Group

Source: Ag Funder News