French venture capital firm Five Seasons has held a €180m final closing for Fund II, three years after closing its debut fund.
The firm said the new fund would continue making Series A and B investments into European food tech companies, with a focus on fast-growing consumer-focused food with environmental or social impact.
Fund II has already made four investments through the new vehicle, including female wellness supplements her1 and plant-based milk alternative producer Vly.
Ivan Farneti, co-founding partner of Five Seasons Ventures, said, “There’s no doubt that Food Tech is experiencing a boom in Europe right now. When we launched Five Seasons in 2018, we were the first VC to focus on Food Tech in Europe, and we believe we contributed to making this an attractive asset class. Fund II was quickly oversubscribed as more investors wanted to get exposed to European Food Tech, seeking high growth and impact.”
Five Seasons said its portfolio companies from Fund I have benefited from an “exponentially growing” trend in Europe with €3bn investment being put into the sector in 2020. The pandemic has also boosted the demand with the shifts to e-grocery delivery and direct-to-consumer food brands.
Fund I’s investment platforms include Europe’s first direct-to-consumer fresh dog food company Butternut Box, reusable smart water bottle maker Air-Up and UK meat alternative producer This. The firm is expecting Fund I’s portfolio to reach a combined revenue of over €350m this year, representing more than 20x growth since 2017.
Founded in 2018, Five Seasons has grown to a team of nine, with the latest addition of a head of impact and sustainable investing to work alongside the investment team and support portfolio companies.
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