Maia Ventures, an early-stage Milan-based AgriFoodTech fund, at the moment introduced the launch of its first fund at €55 million to again 20 to 25 corporations, with preliminary ticket sizes starting from €0.5 to 1.5 million.
The Restricted Associate base brings collectively institutional buyers, such because the European Funding Fund (EIF) and CDP Enterprise Capital Sgr, alongside personal buyers, which embrace main Italian meals corporates and their household places of work, equivalent to Teseo Capital sicav-sif, Cereal Docks (by means of its CVC Gray Silo Ventures), Andriani, amongst others.
“What excites us is the calibre of science and operator expertise now converging on matters equivalent to food-as-medicine, progressive components, and resilient provide chains. As an early-stage companion, we purpose to be among the many first institutional believers, serving to Founders join with business leaders and lay the foundations for scale”, stated David Bassani, Founding Associate at Maia Ventures.
The launch of Maia Ventures’ first fund comes amid an energetic but diverse European AgriFoodTech panorama in 2025. Current rounds have included Proba (Netherlands, €1 million) for agri-food decarbonisation, ODOS (Spain, €680k) for data-driven sustainability, and KOA Biotech (Spain, €2 million) for aquaculture biosensors.
Bigger rounds have additionally appeared, together with yesterday’s Ecorobotix (Switzerland, €90 million Collection D) in precision farming, feld.vitality (Germany, over €10 million) in agri-PV, and Fungu’it (France, €4 million) in fermentation-based components.
Earlier this yr, Nordic Foodtech VC introduced a €40 million first shut for its second fund – barely smaller in scale than Maia Ventures’ €55 million launch, however equally centered on early-stage improvements reworking the meals and agriculture worth chain.
By connecting Italy’s established meals business with early-stage innovation on the intersection of meals, well being and sustainability, Maia could assist stimulate additional enterprise exercise inside Italy’s ecosystem.
“By combining deep business know-how with a powerful industrial community, Maia is greatest positioned to determine and put money into options to issues that matter, as a substitute of in options searching for an issue. This, we consider, is the important thing to tangibly speed up the much-needed evolution of our business,” stated Andrea Galassi, Founding Associate at Maia Ventures.
Based in 2024 by Andrea Galassi and David Bassani, Maia Ventures is energetic in supporting different funding funds within the AgriFoodTech area. Because the unique advisor to Maia Ventures, the agency helps Praesidium S.A. in sourcing, structuring, monitoring, and enhancing the funding alternatives.
The fund is at present absolutely operational with six investments so far and is concentrating on a remaining closing within the coming months.
The workforce behind Maia Ventures is made up of former Founders, buyers, business operators and scientists, and is supported by a technical advisory group that features representatives of a number of the main AgriFood universities and corporates.
“We invested in Maia Ventures as a result of it connects Italy’s world-class meals business with breakthrough AgriFoodTech innovation. The workforce’s deep experience and sturdy community allow them to determine high-impact DeepTech options on the intersection of nutraceutical, meals and well being, the place long-term worth and systemic resilience are established,” stated Claudia Pingue, Head of Tech Switch Fund of CDP Enterprise Capital.
Maia goals to pursue each monetary and impression targets by constructing a more healthy, extra environment friendly, and extra resilient meals system for all. The Italian VC is positioned as a worth‑add companion, bridging Italy’s nicely established meals business with essentially the most promising startups rising from main accelerators, universities and the broader AgriFoodTech ecosystem.
Maia believes that the present downturn in AgriFoodTech funding is producing a singular window of alternative for buyers who deal with structural world shifts within the area, tackling essentially the most urgent business challenges.
Inside this chance, Maia locations specific emphasis on the convergence of meals, well being and sustainability, supporting improvements that ship each particular person well-being and systemic resilience.
