Farm-To-Fork Startup Living Food Bags $7.5 Mn In Series A Round From Amasia, Others

Bengaluru-based Living Food, a managed marketplace startup for fresh, healthy and artisanal foods and beverages, has raised $7.5 Mn in Series A round. Led by US-based ESG-focussed VC firm Amasia, the round also saw participation from SOSV, Blume Founders Fund, and notable investors including Sid Yog and Sandeep Singhal.

Founded in 2018 by Akash Sajith, Shikha Lakhanpal and Niranjan KS, Living Food started by selling farm-to-table subscriptions. In the past three years, the startup has grown to 18+ food artisans offering 700+ fresh food products in 24 categories, which are home-delivered for maximum convenience. The startup also provides do-it-yourself food kits co-created with these artisans. Its revenue comes from sales commissions and user subscriptions generated on the platform, within Bengaluru.

Living Food now plans to expand its presence beyond Bengaluru in 2022, starting with Mumbai in Q1 CY22. The funds raised will help Living Food expand the team, improve logistics and tech offerings and launch new categories.

“We found plenty of opportunities to grow while remaining focussed only on Bengaluru. This funding round is a testament to our relentless focus on transforming our consumers’ eating behaviours — providing access to a vast selection of fresh, clean, and credible food through our fresh food supply chain,” cofounder Sajith said in a statement.

The startup has previously raised $1.1 Mn in a seed round from Amasia and SOSV in January 2021. It recently also launched a cloud kitchen where dishes are prepared from fresh products sold on its platform.

While the industry is dominated by B2B agri supply chain startups such as Aker Foods, Ninjacart, WayCool Foods among others, startups including Whole Foods, Licious and Nature’s Basket are increasingly shifting the organic food consumption trend towards consumer segments.

Food-borne diseases are a growing concern in India, costing $15 Bn annually in health expenses. The health of the Indian population is heavily vulnerable to contaminated food, with unsafe food and water being the biggest cause of preventable infections. Living Food aims to aid initiatives such as ‘Eat Right India’, by partnering with local farmers, bakers, brewers, and other food artisans who use environmentally sustainable practices and provide organic and fresh foods.