Kraft Heinz launches $100mn venture capital fund to invest in food technology
Kraft Heinz has launched a new $100mn venture capital fund called Evolv Ventures, which will invest in emerging technology companies which are shaking up the food industry.
“Through Evolv Ventures, we will work with tomorrow’s most innovative founders and companies in the space, and use the full resources of Kraft Heinz to help them succeed,” said Bernardo Hees, Chief Executive Officer at Kraft Heinz.
The Chicago-based venture capital fund will be led by Bill Pescatello, who was a founding member of Peacock equity fund, an investment group created by GE Capital and NBCUniversal.
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“At Evolv Ventures, we will move beyond brands to have a committed first look at our industry’s most promising and disruptive tech-enabled companies,” Pescatello said.
“With the insights, data and access available at Kraft Heinz, we look to take full advantage of our unique position and be the foremost value-added investor in the space.”
Pescatelllo told Bloomberg that the fund would particularly target startups which are focused on supply chains, logistics, e-commerce and direct-to-consumer projects.
This is Kraft Heinz’s first venture capital fund, but, earlier this year, the American food company launched an incubator called Springboard that aims to develop scale and grow disruptive startups in the food and beverage sector.
Kraft Heinz is the fifth-largest food and beverage company in the world with brands including Philadelphia, Heinz and Oscar Mayer.
The firm says that its new venture fund will help to expose the business to emerging technologies and will help to cement its position in the industry.
