Israeli FoodTech Industry Serves Up Over 300 Companies

The Israeli tech ecosystem has over 300 companies operating in the food technology spheres, according to a recent report by the IVC Research Center, including startups, investors, hubs, and established companies.

As of the first quarter of 2018, there are 311 foodtech companies, a majority of them – 247 – established less than a decade ago, according to the report published in the September 2018 issue of IVC Magazine.

The year 2015 saw the highest growth rate in the sector over the past 10 years, with 67 new startups founded that year, up from 43 founded in 2014. But the rate has been declining, and by 2016, 30 new startups were established, dropping to 18 by 2017, the report reads.

The sector is relatively young, with 258 companies in the R&D process or reporting annual revenue of less than $10 million, IVC says. Leading the industry sector are companies in life sciences and cleantech.

A foodtech firm also saw one of the biggest exits in 2018 and in Israeli history, with Israeli company Frutarom announcing in May that it would be acquired by American multinational International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) for over $7 billion. The deal marks the second-largest transaction for an Israeli company after Intel acquired Jerusalem-based Mobileye, the world leader in advanced driver assistance systems aimed to prevent road collisions, for a record $15.3 million last year.