Evolv Ventures, the $100 million Chicago-based venture fund launched by Kraft Heinz, has backed its first food startup.
The venture firm announced Thursday that it invested an undisclosed amount into GrubMarket, a platform that sources food from local farmers and delivers it directly to businesses and consumers.
Evolv’s investment is part of a Series C round GrubMarket closed for $25 million. Other investors in the round included WI Harper Group and Digital Garage. To date, the San Francisco-based startup has raised nearly $90 million, according to Crunchbase.
Evolv Ventures, founded last year, aims to invest in new tech companies innovating within the food industry. The firm is designed to help Kraft Heinz stay on top of the industry’s changing trends. Evolv is led by former Lightbank partner Bill Pescatello and Grubhub’s former vice president of business development Steve Sanger, who joined in November.
“We’re excited to invest in GrubMarket, a platform that is disrupting the food wholesale market,” Sanger said in a statement. “GrubMarket plans to grow its presence and product offerings through both geographic and product expansion."
Kraft Heinz also has a startup incubator in Chicago called Springboard Brands. Just last month, the incubator announced the five new companies in its latest cohort. They include Blake’s Seed Based, an allergen-free snack bar that uses seeds instead of nuts, and Origin Almond, an almond-based juice alternative to surgery fruit drinks.
