Foodforecast raises 8M€ Series A to scale AI for one of the most impactful climate solutions: reducing food waste in ultra-fresh category

Cologne, 26.02.2026 - Every day, around 30,000 tons of fresh food are wasted across Europe due to inaccurate demand planning in food retail and food service. Ultra-fresh products, with a shelf life ranging from just a few hours to one day, require an entirely new category of forecasting solutions. Foodforecast, a German foodtech company, is tackling this challenge with AI-based demand and production forecasting and has now secured 8 million € in Series A funding. The round was led by impact investors SHIFT Invest from the Netherlands and the European VC ECBF acting as a co-lead. The existing investors Future Food Fund and Aeronaut Invest also participated in the raise.

“This Series A represents a major milestone for Foodforecast,” says Justus Lauten, Founder and CEO. “Our ambition is to fundamentally rethink how ultra-fresh food is planned and produced. With our new investors on board, we are ready to scale our technology internationally and set a new benchmark for planning, efficiency, and sustainability.”

Fueling international growth and enterprise-ready expansion
The Series A investment will enable Foodforecast to expand its presence across European markets and further scale adoption among both SME and enterprise customers in food service, bakery chains, and food retail, enabling smarter production decisions that reduce waste and improve margins. 

Thijs Gitmans, Partner at SHIFT Invest, adds: “Foodforecast stands out as a rare combination of ambition, market understanding, and execution. The team tackles a large, structural problem in ultra-fresh food supply chains with an AI solution that is both highly sophisticated and easy to implement. That balance makes Foodforecast exceptionally well positioned for scalable, international growth.

Proven traction across thousands of stores
Since launching commercially in 2022, Foodforecast has grown rapidly and is now used in several thousand stores across Europe. Customers include leading food service, bakery and retail operators such as SSP Germany and Eat Happy. By enabling highly automated production and ordering processes, Foodforecast helps its customers not only reduce food waste by an average of up to 30%, but also increase sales by up to 11%, and automate more than 90% of previously manual ordering and production processes.  The company’s technology is designed to integrate seamlessly into existing workflows, allowing teams to reduce waste without adding operational complexity.

Impact at the intersection of AI, economics, and sustainability
Sustainability remains a core pillar of Foodforecast’s business model. By improving forecast accuracy, the company enables its customers to use resources more efficiently, reduce emissions, and measurably cut food waste, resulting in more than 8,800 tons of food waste saved to date. At scale, this data-driven approach has the potential to save tens of thousands of tons of food annually, while simultaneously reducing emissions and improving profitability across the value chain.

“Sustainability is not an add-on, but an integral part of the value proposition,” says Isabelle Laurencin, Partner at ECBF. “Foodforecast clearly demonstrates how AI can generate both economic value and measurable impact.”

This operation benefits from support from the European Union under the InvestEU Fund.

About Foodforecast
Foodforecast is a German AI foodtech company specializing in demand and production forecasting for ultra-fresh food supply chains. Its AI solutions enable food businesses across Europe to reduce waste, improve availability, and optimize operations in time-critical food categories.

Contact information:
Fabian von Aichberger, Chief of Staff, fabian.von.aichberger@foodforecast.com

About SHIFT Invest
Founded in 2009, SHIFT Invest is a venture capital fund dedicated to driving positive environmental impact through early-stage investments. The firm focuses on climate, biodiversity, and sustainable resource use, supporting startups that often fall outside the scope of conventional investors.
Its mission is clear: to restore the balance between nature and society, taking both financial and impact risks to help build a more sustainable future.

About Future Food Fund
Future Food Fund is a Netherlands-based venture capital fund investing in Seed and Series A companies across Western Europe that are transforming the food and agriculture value chain. The fund focuses on addressing critical sustainability challenges regarding regenerative agriculture, transparent supply chains and sustainable food supporting a future within planetary boundaries.

About Aeronaut Invest
Aeronaut Invest GmbH is an investment and holding company backing early-stage technology ventures across Europe, with a focus on building future market leaders in scalable, data‑driven markets. Founded in 2014, Aeronaut Invest combines venture capital and private equity expertise to support startups in sectors such as fintech, legaltech, foodtech and AI‑enabled software, often joining international syndicates alongside specialized funds.

About ECBF
ECBF is a specialist venture capital investor dedicated exclusively to the bioeconomy and circular economy. Launched in 2020 and backed by €300 million in committed capital, ECBF supports high-growth companies that turn breakthrough science into scalable businesses. Combining deep scientific expertise with a rigorous, impact-driven investment approach, the fund partners with outstanding entrepreneurs to build global category leaders that reduce pressure on planetary boundaries while delivering competitive, market-rate returns.

Press contact | ECBF Management GmbH
Cornelia Mann | pr@ecbf.vc| +49.160.892.774.4