Ripe Technology, Inc., better known as ripe.io, San Francisco, completed a $2.4 million series seed financing round led by Relish Works, Chicago, and Maersk Growth, the Denmark-based venture capital arm of Maersk.
 
“There is enormous potential for the blockchain of food to transform supply chains, by increasing visibility among all partners, increasing collaboration and identifying efficiencies,” says Peter Jorgensen, venture partner of Maersk Growth. “This marks a strategic investment for Maersk Growth in our effort to increase efficiency and visibility among global supply chains.”

“ripe.io represents our strategy of innovating in the food sector to make dramatic and meaningful progress on food quality, supply efficiency and improved transparency,” adds Mack Tilling, president of Relish Works. “Blockchain is a game changer in the food business, and we are delighted to be part of the investment.”
 
ripe.io is working to improve transparency for food origin, quality, traceability, flavor, sustainability and safety through a technology platform that allows all actors participating in the food value chain—from growers to labs to distributors to retailers— to contribute data and map the journey of food. At the core of its products and services is the “Blockchain of Food,” a food quality network enabled by “food bundles” that capture and share of the full lifecycle of a product from the seed to a consumer.
 
“As an early stage company, we couldn’t be more excited to have Peter and his team join us on this journey,” says Raja Ramachandran, founder and CEO of ripe.io. “Having access to Maersk’s global reach, rich history and enthusiasm in our work has been truly humbling. Combined with Mack’s deep food supply chain expertise and creative problem solving, we couldn’t have wished for better investors and partners.”