Morocco’s UM6P Ventures recently invested in two agrifoodtech start-ups tackling food waste and crop productivity. The investment vehicle in the country’s UM6P university has backed Climate Crop, a genetic editing company, and Akorn Technology, a producer of natural, edible and non-GMO coatings for fresh produce.
Climate Crop, a graduate of the well-respected IndieBio accelerator program, uses gene editing to produce varieties of crops like wheat that are able to yield up to 20% more than standard varieties. The investment in the Israeli startup aims to leverage its genetic editing technology to enhance the crop potential of Morocco’s dominant crops — tomatoes and potatoes.
In the same week, UM6P Ventures also invested in US-based Akorn Technology. Akorn Technology is tackling the post-harvest food wastage issue by producing shelf-life extenders for fresh produce in the form of clean-label, plant-protein-based and edible coatings. The investment will help Akorn Technology ramp up manufacturing and support customer trials on more crops.
Source: agfundernews.com