An early-stage venture capital firm that invests in the future of food has raised a new $45 million fund.
Bluestein Ventures invests in B2C and B2B companies with a focus on high-growth consumer brands, proprietary food-tech, next-gen commerce and value-add digital tech. The Chicago-based firm has made more than 40 investments since its launch, backing breakout companies like Factor, Foxtrot and Meati.
Bluestein's third fund is the first in the 10-year-old firm's history to take outside capital after operating as a family office since 2014.
"As a family we saw a big opportunity developing within the food industry with consumers really changing what they were eating and this $4 trillion industry trying to digitize and innovate with not a lot of capital focused on the earliest stages," Andrew Bluestein, co-founder and managing partner at Bluestein Ventures, told Chicago Inno. "We felt there was an inflection-point opportunity to bring in additional capital support."
Bluestein invests across the value chain in food, including products, commerce, software and food-tech and is focused around three themes: nutrition, sustainability and digitization.
Ashley Hartman, managing partner of Bluestein Ventures, expects to make 25 investments with the new fund. She said that 30% of Bluestein's portfolio is in Chicago, and she anticipates continuing to have strong ties to the city moving forward.
Hartman said the industry is at a major inflection point within consumer behavior and technology that will bring the food industry forward.
"We're in the very early innings of [artificial inteligence] and food. When you think about the entire supply chain, it's really hard to disrupt it with any one technology," she said. "When we look at AI, we're looking for what the right applications within the food space are and where we see opportunities through the supply chain."
