Technology and innovation have always been a cornerstone in the development of new agriculture and food systems. From the development of basic hand tools thousands of years ago, to the invention of the plow, new irrigation strategies, and biotechnology, innovative new developments have evolved and altered the way we do agriculture since humans first started cultivating food. While historically innovation has not always led to entirely positive outcomes, today armed with new understandings of agricultural production, technology can be an enabling force for new, regenerative agriculture and food systems in a way it never has been before.
To help us identify some of the most promising innovations working to enable regeneration in Europe today, RFSI – along with partner The First Thirty (TFT) – held a call for pitchers for the 2025 RFSI Europe event, to be held in Brussels, February 26-27.
This year’s theme is Driving Planetary and Human Health through AgriFood Innovation and we invited start-ups advancing the connection between planetary health and human well-being through transformative food systems to apply to pitch at the event. As this sector becomes essential to achieving sustainable health outcomes, high-impact innovations that address these pathways will become increasingly important. To that end, pitch applicants fell into three different categories that serve as a means to addressing planetary and human health:
- Ecosystem Health and Regeneration
Solutions that restore and support ecosystem resilience, with a focus on soil, plant, and animal health. This category encompasses technologies and products that measure, enhance, or regenerate the health of ecosystems and agricultural environments. - Intelligent Supply Chains
Start-ups that optimize efficiency, transparency, and resilience across the food supply chain, using advanced tools to improve the journey from production to consumer. This category targets innovations that streamline logistics, track supply integrity, and boost sustainable distribution. - Nutrition and Health Optimization
Innovations focused on improving human health through nutrition and data-driven insights. This category includes nutrient-dense and functional food products, personalized nutrition solutions, and technologies that link dietary choices with health resilience, longevity, and wellness outcomes.
We received many fascinating applications and the diversity amongst the top 10 covered a wide spectrum of innovative opportunities in the space – from technology that harnesses the power of water for farmers, to supply chain solutions that reduce waste and improve transparency, to strategies that can inform decisions to improve human health outcomes. Together, all these solutions serve as as a valuable reminder of the potential that innovation has to create regenerative transformation from farmer to consumer.
This point is echoed by Antony Yousefian, of The First Thirty, “Despite the funding environment, this shortlist shows that European innovation is very much alive and kicking. Every one in this shortlist is driving a large economic benefit in the direction of multiple stakeholders groups in the food system.”
Now you can explore the top 10 pitchers yourself and in just two weeks we will announce the 4 finalists who will be pitching at this year’s RFSI Europe event at the end of February!
The top 10 innovative pitches in Europe for 2025 are:
(listed alphabetical by category)
Ecosystem Health and Regeneration
- Canopy Nordic: A collaboration between Denmark-based Regen Farmer and U.S.-based Canopy Farm Management working to expand agroforestry capacity in Europe.
- Oko Ag: Making it simple for UK farmers to find the right grants and subsidies for their farm.
- UpTerra: Enabling technology that uses water and energetic frequencies delivered through three components to help increase a farm’s efficiency, reduce input costs and maximize productivity.
- Veridi Technologies: Pioneering the use of computer vision and automated microscopy to diagnose plant pathogens and analyze soil biodiversity.
- Zymofix: Scaling up the production of beneficial microorganisms for agriculture and technical applications by fermenting biomass residues.
Intelligent Supply Chains
- Amfora: Strengthening the regenerative olive oil supply chain by removing the intermediaries and getting farmers paid better.
- RegenRate: Introducing resilient crops like camelina, ensuring both environmental sustainability and increased profitability for farmers.
- SeedSight: Combating global food waste and fraud by curating a comprehensive digital repository of seeds and grains signatures, meticulously validated through biomolecular and biophysical analyses provided in an almost real-time platform .
Food as Healthcare
- Boobybiome: Translating cutting-edge breast milk research into solutions to improve infant health.
- Harvestcare: Connecting food and farming so that the food we eat – and the soil it comes from – become our medicine.
Congratulations to these innovative start-ups and stay tuned to learn who will be pitching at this year’s RFSI Europe event in Brussels, February 26-27.
Learn more about RFSI Europe here.
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