Today they have been presented at the ICEX Auditorium the conclusions of the third report on the Foodtech sector in Spain. In the framework of a networking event, there has been a debate with some of the protagonists of the ecosystem about the challenges and the internationalization strategy for this sector. The Foodtech sector is an essential link in the Spanish food industry. is producing a intense transformation of food as a result of the impact of new technologies and the foodtech ecosystem is set to play an essential role in this process in the coming years.
Thus, in a context of global contraction, the Investment of the Foodtech sector in Spain in 2022 it has increased by 9.38%, reaching 268 million eurosdiscounting the Glovo effect, according to the report “Addressing new challenges across the food value chain” Promoted by ICEX Spain Export and Investment. But not only has it been able to attract important investment operations with national and international players, but there has also been a significant increase in the number of operators in the ecosystem: 412 startups, compared to 407 last yearmore than 30,000 food processing companies involved, as well as more than 50 specialized universities and 20 cutting-edge technology centers involved.
These are some of the conclusions drawn from the report on the Spanish Foodtech sector in 2022 presented today, an essential link in the Spanish food industry.
This third report also points out that, in order to consolidate in the ecosystem, it is essential to have a high capacity and technological strength, which translates into patents, trade secrets and registered trademarks. Thus, 32.9% of the 412 Spanish startups have a patent for their technology and 29% have a trade secret, which indicates the strengthening of Spanish companies in the sector.
Also, during 2022, the percentage of startups that have developed their own technology has increased even more. In this area, there is spectacular growth in the use of technologies, mainly startups that use artificial intelligence (AI), which go from 28.21 to 40.79%, gaining 12 points compared to the previous year.
It is worth noting the contribution of the sector in terms of circular economy, providing these technologies that allow the revaluation of by-products, thus reducing waste and creating new uses that range from packaging to ingredients.
ICEX, dynamic agent
The CEO of ICEX, Maria Penahas inaugurated the event to present the report, emphasizing that it is about “a fundamental sector for attracting capital and investment in startups”. He has stressed that “It has become a key with a high added value in any strategy in favor of the knowledge and expansion of our ecosystem of innovative and technological entrepreneurs.” and has also pointed out “the sector’s commitment to sustainability and make this attribute its flag”.
The CEO has also highlighted that “there is no promotion strategy that is not based on knowledge”, and in that sense, “this report, within the framework of our alliance with Eatable Adventures, is undoubtedly a fundamental element of that knowledge”.
In closing his speech, Maria Pena He wanted to record that “If Spain will continue to be a Spain Food Nation, it will be because it is also a Spain Foodtech Nation”.
ICEX has a wide range of support instruments for the Foodtech sector: in addition to providing strategic information in key countries, it dedicates a area in Invest in Spain and also a section of the portal Foods and Wines from Spain (FWFS) for give it maximum international visibility and make it the flag of our food industry.
In addition, from ICEX these lines of work are developed to give more strength to our external projection as Spain Foodtech Nation:
- Organization of webinars to present the Spanish sector in strategic markets such as Japan, Israel or Singapore.
- Promotion of alliances with all agents in the ecosystem: agreements with accelerators, hubs and technology centers in their own programs (Spain Foodtech from Eatable Adventures, Open Innovation Programs from KM ZERO or CNTA)
- Design of programs aimed at strengthening our startups and scaleups in critical ecosystems such as the Dutch one, with the third call for the program CHALLENGE FOODTECH NL. Likewise, CHALLENGE Tel Aviv, for purely digital companies.
- Development of support programs for international investors in our industry, such as INNOVAINVESTwhich has already closed such important operations in 2022 such as the Biotech foods operation, in which JBS participates, with more than 750,000 euros.