Fuel for Growth (EFKO corporate VC)

Profile

WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT?
Fuel for Growth is a seed / early-stage venture capital firm focusing primarily on FoodTech startups from all over the world. With $50 million under management, Fuel for Growth targets synthetic biology companies affecting key challenges in sugar replacement, low calories fats, alternative proteins as well as digital solutions that make the Agro- and Food- ecosystems more competitive and efficient. With support of our anchor limited partner – EFKO Group (leading oils & fats manufacturing company in Russia), we have recognized the rise of entrepreneurs and disruptive innovation in the nascent FoodTech sector. Our investment strategy leverages our network of several startup development organizations, located primarily in Israel, Europe, Russia, corporate innovation partners, and co-investors to provide entrepreneurs with the resources they typically need to rapidly scale their businesses. Our team spent professional careers advising, mentoring, and investing in entrepreneurs. With multiple challenges and magnitude of possible implications, we believe FoodTech sector represents a great venture capital opportunity.

Fuel for Growth team has spent a lot of time and energy in learning and sharing best practices between entrepreneurs, trying to standardize our approach for helping our potential portfolio companies scale in a capital efficient manner. Part of this approach is through our annual local contests of startups – StartupLand and Smartass - which we sponsor with other local VCs and development institutions who share many of our same investment views and values.

WHERE DID OUR NAME COME FROM?
In naming our fund, we wanted to emphasize our role and commitment to being involved with disruptive, early-stage companies that are capable of rapid growth. Someone suggested the name Fuel for Growth and it really seemed to fit as it serves several roles: gives companies fuel (investment, experience, networking) to grow.

WHAT DEFINES YOUR PORTFOLIO?
Fuel for Growth invests in entrepreneurs and innovation originating elsewhere because technologies we are interested in are quite unique and can be born in any part of the planet. Our firm has particular interest in entrepreneurs that are building their business around a strong technology and/or industrial ecosystem. If this ecosystem doesn’t exist locally where these entrepreneurs and companies are situated, we'll leverage our expertise and relationships to help open secondary offices in locations with fewer barriers to securing talent, financing, and business scalability.

We are Entrepreneur-minded, inclusive, teamwork, growth