PHILADELPHIA, PA – AgroFresh is kicking off the New Year with a new commercial agreement with It’s Fresh!, investing $10 million (£7.63 million) into the British food tech company to accelerate global expansion and the development of planned new products.

“AgroFresh is always looking for ways to reach new markets, and we are delighted to join forces with It’s Fresh!” said AgroFresh CEO Jordi Ferre in a press release. “We’re excited to tap into the innovative thinking and expertise in food freshness technology that It’s Fresh! offers and I expect big things of this new collaboration.”

It’s Fresh! is the company behind a ground-breaking technology that extends the life, quality, freshness, and flavor of produce. Its discreet green and white filters, which absorb the ripening hormone ethylene, have had a huge impact on food waste and are now being used by leading supermarkets in the U.K,. the U.S., and Europe, including Walmart, Albertsons, Safeway, Morrisons, Waitrose, M&S, and Carrefour.

“We’re delighted with this investment from such a respected industry leader. Given their considerable experience in post-harvest produce management, it’s a perfect fit for our business,” It’s Fresh! CEO Peter Shalson said. “This alignment with AgroFresh will allow access to its 3,000 customers as well as its highly-respected R&D centers worldwide, assisting quicker development of new products, and enabling our technology to reduce food waste in many more countries around the world.”

With food waste posing one of the biggest threats to our industry and the environment—statistics from leading food charity Love Food Hate Waste show seven million tons of food and drink are thrown away from U.K. homes every year, primarily due to not using fresh produce quickly enough after purchasing—It’s Fresh! and AgroFresh are emphasizing freshness in order to reduce market waste and help save households money by eliminating wasted food from household costs.

“Both companies share a common culture and an unwavering commitment to developing new solutions to the growing problem of food waste, especially at retail. Under this agreement, we will work cooperatively to grow our existing retail and grower products and to develop new solutions for markets and crops not presently served,” continued Shalson. “As a business, we’re dedicated to making fresh produce more available and affordable and reducing global food waste in an ethical and sustainable way. An investment like this can really help us get closer to achieving this.”

The companies’ respective R&D teams will work together to further their mutual goal of improving food quality, shelf-life, and freshness of produce.

For more on what’s shaking up the produce industry, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.

AgroFresh It's Fresh!