Blue Tree Technologies, a Foodtech that removes sugar from common foods, has raised $2.26 million in a funding round led by online investment platform OurCrowd. Sucden Ventures also participated in the funding round.
Founded in Israel in 2020 by Didier Toubia, a co-founder and former CEO of cultivated meat startup Aleph Farms.
Blue Tree’s technology is described as advanced separation techniques to remove naturally occurring sugar molecules from beverages such as juices, milk, and beer. While nutrients and aroma remain, the level of sugar in the food is reduced.
The company’s system is said to be designed for easy integration into existing production lines. Blue Tree states that it has obtained self-affirmed FDA food-safe status for its sugar reduction tech.
Blue Tree CEO Michael Gordon shared that it has been impacted by the military call-up following the invasion by Hamas on October 7th, adding that they had to quickly adapt.
“…we secured a new location and continued with both fundraising and product development. During this period, Blue Tree strategically expanded its solution to encompass additional categories. Although we remain displaced from the northern Israeli AgTech valley in the Galilee where we graduated from Israel’s Fresh Start incubator in June 2022, our commitment to the region endures. For five four years, we have worked with local industry leaders, developing a long-term vision. We are proud to secure funding during these challenging times from key partners, enabling us to reach our audience this year. This demonstrates our commitment to innovation and our goal of improving healthy beverage choices. With this additional funding, we aim to make a significant impact worldwide, one sugar molecule at a time.”
Ron Stern, General Partner, Head of Portfolio Management at OurCrowd said, they are very proud of the progress and resilience of the firm. He described the tech as a breakthrough for sugar reduction expressing his opinion that BlueTree has the potential to “transform the beverage industry.”
The company noted that the funding is one of the first significant investments in the Foodtech sector since the invasion. In Israel, IVC has reported a significant decrease, with just $51 million invested in the Foodtech sector across nine deals ‒ a 90% decrease compared to Q1 2022, when $577 million was invested in 19 deals.
From 2020 to 2023, Israel was second only to the US in Foodtech investing, with $1.9B invested in the three-year period.
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