Mondelēz enters foodtech space with seed investment in Torr

  • 10 November 2020
  • Foodtech
Israeli start-up Torr uses proprietary technology to blend real food ingredients in a natural, healthier and better way

By Murielle Gonzalez

Portrait photo of the founders of Torr
From left: Torr FoodTech co-founders Roy Naaman, Gil De Picciotto, and Yoel Benesh. Photo as seen on the company website

Mondelēz has made its first investment in foodtech, backing start-up Torr FoodTech with seed funding. Mel Gaceta and Gil Horsky of SnackFutures, Mondelēz venture capital and innovation arm, led the seed investment alongside The Kitchen, Israel’s foodtech innovation platform.

Torr enters the market to challenge multi-ingredient snacking categories with a unique technology designed to enable mixing real food ingredients in a natural, healthier and better way.

The start-up was founded by a trio of entrepreneurs with a longstanding experience in the CPG food space – Roy Naaman, chef executive; Gil De Picciotto, chief operating officer; and Yoel Benesh, chief technology officer.

Torr claims its solution “is highly flexible, generating infinite opportunities to create all of the snacks we can dream of”. This includes manufacturing with several ingredients without sugar binders and delivering a personalised premium experience to consumers through real healthy foods.

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Venture capital for innovation

Launched in 2018, SnackFutures is a key pillar of the consumer-centric growth strategy of Mondelēz. It was designed as an independent hub that brings three core tenets of growth under one umbrella to accelerate innovation – brand invention; reinvention of small-scale brands with large-scale potential; and venture investments to bring emerging brands and strategic capabilities.

Torr joins SnackFutures’ portfolio, which includes Hu, a range of minimally processed snack foods, and prebiotic fibre breakfast cookies Uplift.

“Our investment in Torr validates Mondelēz International’s venture approach that began almost two years’ ago with the launch of our SnackFutures model,” said Rob Hargrove, executive vice president of research, development & quality for Mondelēz International.

Hargrove added: “Ventures and partnerships with new, innovative organisations enable us to secure future growth, and we will continue to expand our SnackFutures approach into new markets in the future.”

The seed investment in Torr builds on the partnership between Mondelēz and The Kitchen that started in April last year to share deal flow and proof of concept developments.

“The Israeli FoodTech sector is one of the most dynamic and exciting innovation ecosystems in the world,” said Jonathan Berger, chief executive of The Kitchen. “Through our ongoing collaboration with SnackFutures and Mondelēz International, we are able to provide unparalleled access and visibility into one of the world’s leading FoodTech ecosystems.”