Brave New Food

What Brave New Food does

Brave New Food is a Netherlands-based open innovation platform operating since 2020 to connect food startups and scale-ups with corporates, retailers, distributors, and impact investors. The company organises Open Innovation Challenges, Specific Company Challenges, and an annual Startup Challenge (with a BNF Startup Award), while also providing Startup Scouting & Matchmaking, Online Matchmaking, In-house Startup Demos, Round Table Expert Sessions, and Partner Network Events built around four themes — Alternative Protein, Zero Food Waste, Sustainable Packaging, and Healthier Food Solutions. Platform infrastructure runs on the starthubs.co SaaS hub, enabling self-serve account creation, pitch submission, and virtual event participation.

The business targets a two-sided market. Startup participation in challenges is free, lowering the cost of building a deep, curated pipeline (the company reports 800+ startups/scale-ups have pitched, 1,000+ pitches from 50+ countries, 600+ 1-on-1 introductions, and 200+ follow-up conversations). Revenue is monetised on the corporate and investor side via partner network membership and challenge sponsorship: organisations such as Coroos, Hocras, Foodvalley NL, Horizon Flevoland, and DOEN Foundation participate either as paying corporate/ecosystem partners, anchor Sponsors, or jury members. Go-to-market combines content marketing (website, blog, monthly newsletter, LinkedIn) with event-driven acquisition through challenges, partner meetups, and virtual 18-minute Startup & Expert video sessions, supplemented by PR and earned media around challenge launches.

Operationally, Brave New Food is a private company with 1-10 employees, headquartered in Bilthoven, the Netherlands, co-founded by Bas Allart and Jesse 't Lam, with named operating staff including Program Director Milo Laureij. The company is bootstrapped (no disclosed funding rounds, M&A, or institutional investors in the input) and relies on the structural position of its partners within the Dutch/EU food innovation ecosystem as the principal commercial asset rather than proprietary technology.

Name

Brave New Food

Website

https://bravenewfood.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Brave New Food is a Netherlands-based open innovation platform, founded in 2020, that connects food startups and scale-ups with corporates, retailers, distributors, and impact investors via challenges, matchmaking, and themed events focused on alternative protein, zero food waste, sustainable packaging, and healthier food.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Innovation Services

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAHADAI

F&B Experiences & Group Dining (Restaurant Buyouts, Tastings, Catering Coordination)

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Destination Management Companies (DMCs) & Incentive Travel Specialists

Keywords

• Open innovation platform
• Food startup matchmaking
• Corporate innovation challenges
• Food industry networking
• Startup corporate partnerships

Headquarters

HQ city

Bilthoven

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Partner Network Membership: Companies join the Brave New Food network to access startups and innovation solutions. Partners get visibility on the platform, receive pitches, and gain access to matchmaking events. The revenue model appears to be based on partnership fees for corporate access to the innovation ecosystem.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Brave New Food operates an open innovation platform that connects food startups and scale-ups with established food corporates, retailers, distributors, and impact investors. Its core services are organized innovation challenges (both open multi-partner challenges and specific company challenges), startup scouting and 1-on-1 matchmaking, partner network events and pitch events, and access to its curated online partner network. Participation in challenges is free for startups while corporate partners pay for network access, challenge organization, and visibility services.

Product overview

Brave New Food operates as an open innovation platform that connects startups and scale-ups with established food companies and investors. The platform architecture consists of a central matching service with multiple engagement pathways: Open Innovation Challenges (general challenges reaching 30+ partners simultaneously) and Specific Company Challenges (individual company-focused) as the primary challenge formats; Startup Scouting & Matchmaking, Online Matchmaking, and In-house Startup Demos for direct connections; plus Round Table Expert Sessions and Partner Network Events for community building. Additional services include Pitch Events (with the annual BNF Startup Award competition) and Partner Platform Presence. The platform organizes around four thematic focus areas: Alternative Protein, Zero Food Waste, Sustainable Packaging, and Healthier Food Solutions. Since 2020, the platform has facilitated 1,000+ pitches from over 50 countries, 600+ 1-on-1 meetings, and 200+ follow-up conversations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Open Innovation Challenges

Quantifiable outcome

• 800+ startups and scale-ups pitched in Innovation Challenges
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Multiple Expert OrganizationsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 June 2023Experts from organizations including Bodec, Avebe, Cibus Nexum, Studio Fava, Feedingman Food Innovation, Handtmann Benelux, Proxes, Cosun, and Menken van den Assem participate in Startup & Expert Events to advise food entrepreneurs.
• HocrascoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 September 2022Wholesale company for food professionals in the Netherlands. Connected with GRO (circular food venture) through Brave New Food's matchmaking event. Now distributing GRO's mushroom-based products to food service clients. Looking for startups with distinctive products that add value to their business.
• CorooscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Leading European producer in fruit and vegetable industry. Collaborated with startup SUNT after being introduced through Brave New Food's Open Call. Shared knowledge, conducted successful production trials, and validated business case together. Coroos provided production capabilities while SUNT brought future-proof ideas.
• Foodvalley NLcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndependent international organization working with front runners to accelerate the global transition to sustainable food systems. Global ambition: tasty, healthy, affordable, and sustainable food for 10 billion people by 2050. Managing Director Marjolein Brasz serves on Brave New Food's jury.
• Foodvalley NL (Upcycling Community)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational and closed group of partners collaborating on pre-competitive challenges around upcycling of food losses towards food and feed. Extra opportunity mentioned for sidestream valorization challenge participants.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• FoodHack: Global community and matchmaking platform for food tech entrepreneurs, investors, and corporates. Highly comparable as it similarly connects startups with corporates and investors through events, challenges, and digital platform.
• Foodbytes by Rabobank: Rabobank's food and agtech startup innovation platform running pitch competitions, networking, and corporate-startup matchmaking. Highly comparable as a corporate-backed food innovation platform serving similar dual audiences.
• StartLife: Wageningen-based food and agtech accelerator supporting startups with funding, mentorship, and corporate introductions. Direct Dutch competitor serving the same startup-corporate-investor food innovation ecosystem.
• Forward Fooding: FoodTech 500 ranking and innovation platform connecting food tech startups with corporates. Similar matchmaking, events, and corporate-startup brokering model in the European food innovation space.

Broad incumbents

• EIT Food: EU-backed food innovation initiative with hundreds of millions in funding, running accelerator programs, matchmaking, and innovation challenges across Europe. Overlaps significantly with Brave New Food's European food innovation matchmaking model.
• Foodvalley NL: Dutch food innovation organization working with corporates, startups, and researchers on sustainable food systems. While listed as a partner of Brave New Food, it operates similar programs and is the broader ecosystem anchor.
• Plug and Play Food & Beverage: Global innovation accelerator and corporate-startup matchmaking platform with a dedicated Food & Beverage vertical. Operates innovation challenges, accelerator programs, and curated startup-corporate introductions at significantly larger scale.

Emerging players

• ProVeg Incubator: ProVeg's incubator program supporting alternative protein startups with funding and corporate introductions. Partial overlap with Brave New Food's alternative protein focus area.
• The FoodTech Challengers: European food tech startup challenge and accelerator connecting food innovators with industry partners. Comparable model of curated challenges and matchmaking within European food innovation.
• AgFunder: AgriFoodTech venture capital platform and intelligence provider covering food tech innovation and connecting investors with startups. Adjacent as a deal-flow and intelligence platform serving similar investors and corporates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks3 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bravefood

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments4 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Brave New Food