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The Spoon

Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

Sufresca

Wrap It Up: Innovation in Edible Solutions to Extend Food Lifespans (a Spoon Plus Report)

Suppliers, especially large warehouse distributors, have several strategies they currently use to extend the lifespan of produce. One is refrigeration. Produce can be stored in cold warehouses to slow down the ripening process and make it last longer. Another is to install vents in the warehouses to remove ethylene, the gas that causes fruit to ripen, from storage. Some warehouses even use gases like nitrogen and sulphur to counteract the effects of ethylene, thus keeping fruit preserved in an unripe state until they’re ready to ship to retailers. Some fruits, like lemons and apples, are also coated in an artificial wax to keep them from rotting.

All of these solutions have their drawbacks. Vents are expensive to install, using gases to regulate ethylene is not proven to be effective, and artificial wax is unappetizing. Regulating produce freshness at warehouses also does not help once that fruit or vegetable has left the supplier and is sitting on a retail shelf or in a consumer kitchen.

However, over the past several years, innovators have begun experimenting with new ways to extend the lifespan of fresh produce. These solutions are meant to be a more sustainable, healthy, and versatile alternative to current practices used in warehouses.

This report is available to subscribers of Spoon Plus, includes analysis of key players Apeel, Sufresca, Stixfresh, and Hazel Technologies, a look at opportunities in this fast-changing space, the impact of COVID and a look forward at what’s next.

New subscribers to Spoon Plus can use discount code NEWMEMBER to get 15% off an annual plan today. Go here to learn more. 

Sufresca Gets a $500,000 Investment For Its Edible Food Coating Solution That Fights Food Waste

Israeli startup Sufresca, who makes an edible coating that extends the life of fruits and vegetables, has raised a $500,000 seed round from agtech VC Rimonim, according to AgFunder News. The round brings Sufresca’s total funding so far to $1.3 million. 

Sufresca’s edible fruit and vegetable coating is meant to extend the shelf life of post-harvest produce and in doing so cut down on food waste in the home. An edible coating also eliminates the need to use plastic packaging, such a shrink-wrap, for produce items in the store. Sufresca’s technology uses liquid formulas that when applied to fruits and vegetables creates a “breathable coating” that the company claims can extend shelf life by several weeks. The approach is similar to post-harvest food waste solutions currently being done by Apeel Sciences, whose plant-based powder can be mixed with water then applied to produce to prevent spoilage.

While Apeel is currently focused on avocados, Sufresca is starting out with fruits and vegetables for which no edible coating solution exists right now. Think tomatoes, garlic, and pomegranate arils, as opposed to apples or oranges, which typically get coated in wax. The company says future products will include cucumbers, melons, bananas, and asparagus, among others. 

Coating fruits and vegetables is one way to fight food waste and reduce spoilage. There are a growing number of other solutions coming to market. Hazel Technologies makes biodegradable packaging inserts that extend the shelf life of fruits and vegetables. StixFresh, who won the Startup Showcase award at this year’s SKS, has created a sticker that when applied to produce releases protective compounds that cloak the fruit or vegetable to extend its shelf life. 

Roughly one third of the world’s food goes to waste each year, and 14 percent of that food is lost between harvest and retail, according to the United Nations. Startups up and down the supply chain are now testing ways to combat this problem. We can expect to see many more food preservation tactics like those of Sufresca and Apeel as the food waste problem gets bigger and we (hopefully) get smarter about fighting it. 

According to AgFunder, Sufresca, which was founded in 2018, is aiming to have at least some of its products reach Europe and North America within two years.