Thai Union to invest in shrimp tech startup

Thai Union Corporate Venture Fund is set to invest in HydroNeo GmBH, a company that uses high-tech solutions to optimize shrimp aquaculture production, Thai Union said in a statement on Wednesday, 30 September.

The startup, which has operations in Germany and Thailand, has created its “Smart Farm Management System” that it said “will change the way shrimp farming has been done in the past and will tackle some of the biggest challenges the industry is facing through our aquaculture monitoring and automation system.”

The HydroNeo’s system is designed to help farmers monitor water quality, reduce energy costs, and improve feed conversion ratio in their ponds, using various sensors installed, the company said on its website. 

Along with HydroNeo, two other startups will also receive funding from Thai Union as they are all recent graduates of food-tech incubator and accelerator SPACE-F, which was founded by Thai Union and other partners. They include Alchemy Foodtech Pte. Ltd., a diabetes food tech innovation firm based in Singapore, and Manna Foods Co, a U.S.-based insect tech and e-commerce company.

Thai Union also announces its decision to invest in VisVires New Protein, a Singapore-based food tech investment fund.

"We are committed to Open Innovation as an important part in Thai Union's innovation strategy, complementing our in-house innovation efforts. As such, we are working with external parties including universities, research institutions, and the broader food tech ecosystem to support and fast-track innovative ideas and technologies. Our venture capital investments in the food tech space are an important part of this,” Thai Union President and CEO Thiraphong Chansiri said. “Of course, our investment in these companies goes beyond a financial commitment as we also intend to provide guidance and support and will look to pursue collaborations wherever possible."

Thai Union created its Corporate Venture Fund last year to push investment in food-tech innovation. The company has made an initial commitment of USD 30 million (EUR 25.6 million) for investments in innovative companies that are developing breakthrough technologies in food-tech.

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