Lombardo-based startup Babaco Market has attracted €6.3 million in series A funds, bringing its lifetime funding to €8.1 million. Italy's Babaco Market distributes food products that have small cosmetic defects or other qualities that would usually see the products discarded. Figures show at least 6% of the EU's total greenhouse gas emissions come from food waste.
Babaco collects fruit, vegetables and other foods from 100 producers that are perfectly edible otherwise, and distributes them in food boxes marketed in four Italian regions (Lombardy, Emilia Romagna, Veneto and Piedmont) through its sustainable groceries subscription service.
The startup was founded in May 2020 by Italian founders Francesco Gilberti and Luca Massaeretti, who were inspired by a couple of similar food startups in the US: Imperfect Foods and Misfits Market.
According to Babaco, some 35,000 food boxes shipped from its marketplace in 2021 and the company is expecting to more than double that figure this year. Following the series A raise, Babaco plans to fund an expansion drive into international markets, with the recruitment of additional staff.
Source: tech.eu
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