EIF Backs €80 Million Fund to Grow Europe’s Foodtech Innovators

Nordic Foodtech VC completed the fund’s first closing at €40 million in April 2025.

The European Investment Fund is committing up to €30 million to Nordic Foodtech VC's second venture capital fund, strengthening financial support for young European companies developing cleaner, safer and more resilient ways to produce food. Known as NFT.VC Fund II, the Helsinki-based fund has a target size of €80 million and expects to invest in around 30 early-stage businesses, with Northern Europe as its main market and additional opportunities considered across the continent.

Nordic Foodtech VC completed the fund's first closing at €40 million in April 2025. The EIF commitment brings the fund much closer to its overall target and is expected to encourage more private investors to participate, giving promising agrifood ventures access to capital at a point when conventional financing is often difficult to secure. Many science-based companies face their greatest financial pressure while trying to prove that a discovery can work outside a laboratory, develop a commercial product and build the team required to enter the market.

New fund will support agriculture, health, aquaculture and biosolutions

NFT.VC Fund II will invest mainly at the pre-seed and seed stages, including in businesses emerging from universities and research centres. Its areas of interest include sustainable agriculture, food production, nutrition, health, aquaculture and the wider biosolutions sector, where biological processes and scientific innovation can replace resource-intensive industrial methods.

The companies receiving support could work on technologies that reduce emissions, improve crop resilience, strengthen food security, limit waste or create healthier products. These fields are becoming increasingly important as farmers and food producers face climate disruption, changing consumer needs, pressure on natural resources and growing concerns about the reliability of international supply chains.

EIB Group Vice-President Karl Nehammer said Europe has excellent food and agricultural research, yet promising technologies require capital and specialist knowledge to make the difficult journey from laboratory experiments to commercial products. He said the investment would help young businesses turn new ideas into viable companies that improve food security, climate resilience and European competitiveness.

Specialist expertise will guide founders through their riskiest years

Nordic Foodtech VC combines venture capital with scientific and industry knowledge, allowing its team to support founders through technical development, business planning and early commercial growth. Its first fund invested in 18 companies across the Nordic and Baltic regions, giving the firm experience in identifying research-led ventures and helping them navigate the challenges that often arise before a technology begins generating revenue.

Co-founder and Managing Partner Mika Kukkurainen said the EIF's support would allow Nordic Foodtech VC to expand its reach across Northern Europe. He described the fund's portfolio companies as builders of the deep-technology solutions Europe needs for food security, resilience and nutrition, adding that the continent has the talent and opportunity to lead the future development of food and agriculture.

The EIF investment is supported by the InvestEU equity product for climate and environmental solutions, including funding from the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund for investments connected to the blue economy. EIB Risk Capital Resources are also supporting the commitment.

Most investments made through NFT.VC Fund II are expected to contribute to climate action and environmental sustainability, while its investment approach will also encourage greater gender diversity. By placing patient capital and specialist guidance behind early-stage innovators, the partnership gives European researchers and founders a stronger chance to build businesses capable of making food production more secure, nutritious and environmentally responsible.