November 2, 2023

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

The unlocked benefits of mushrooms are continually expanding as scientific research and technological innovations shed light on their multifaceted potential. From promoting health and sustainability to nutritional benefits such as essential B vitamins, antioxidants, fiber, and protein, to enhancing culinary experiences, and even contributing to ecological restoration, mushrooms are proving to be a versatile and valuable resource that enriches various aspects of our lives.

Luckily, mushrooms can be grown indoors and on a year-round basis, making them impervious to the supply chain disruptions that affect the vast majority of food crops, at nearly zero environmental cost. 

However, our current mushroom value chains are fragmented, inefficient, and largely unsustainable, as mushrooms are transported long distances resulting in shorter shelf life, compromised taste, depleted nutrient profiles, and heavy carbon footprints. 

At the same time, demand continues to grow, driven by a surge in more plant-based and vegan diets, greater health consciousness, and sustainable meat and animal protein alternatives. 

Conscious of the challenges existing in mushroom cultivation, Berlin-based agtech startup Tupu has closed on $3.2 million in Seed funding to foster an evolution in the industry through decentralization of the farming system. Joining the company as partners is FoodLabs and Zubi Capital who co-led the round, along with participation from Clear Current Capital, FoodHack, IT-Farm, Coast Cap, and prominent business food tech angel investors such as Roger Hassan and Gil Horsky.

“We are grateful to have such forward-thinking investors onboard that share our faith in the power of mushrooms to address the pressing challenges of global food insecurity in the face of the climate crisis,” said Eldad Arnon, co-founder and CEO,  Tupu. “We envision a future where food is produced right where it is consumed and organic farm-fresh food is accessible to everyone.”

Eldad Arnon and Daniel Lock, two experienced managers in the controlled environment farming industry with Infarm and Kalera, respectively, founded Tupu in 2021 with a mission to unlock the untapped potential in the mushroom kingdom.

By combining its patent-pending modular farming system with bioscience, robotics, and AI, Tupu grows a diverse range of organic gourmet mushrooms directly in cities, giving consumers sustainable, farm-fresh products that are competitively priced. 

“While the vertical farming sector has been challenging recently, in particular for leafy greens and other energy-intensive crops, urban farming will play a key role in our future food system”, said Lock.  “Unlike plants, mushrooms have always been cultivated indoors, yet in an inefficient manner, and we’re leapfrogging the current state of the industry with our technology by 50 years. Mushrooms offer immense potential across various sectors – food is just the beginning.”

Tupu’s technology builds on multiple key elements, including the industry’s first gourmet mushroom harvesting robot, advanced camera vision artificial intelligence, and the integration of millions of data points from IoT devices located throughout the farm. 

The digitization and automation of the company’s value chain addresses a range of challenges in both agriculture and food manufacturing from labor scarcity to yield improvement, and spatial efficiency. 

“Controlled environment farming is a key technology to make our food supply chain climate resilient,” said Till Hoelzer, principal, FoodLabs. “We’re excited about Tupu as they are able to make indoor farming economically viable. As early backers of the company, we’re very happy about their recent funding round and their journey ahead.” 

~ Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor in chief with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and  Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Group’s Unconventional Ag. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.

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