tech.eu
From Oatly to agritech: inside Sweden's evolving foodtech ecosystem
If you’re interested in agritech or foodtech, Daniel Skavén Ruben is someone worth speaking to. His career has taken him from government and food policy to startups, more than 50 angel investments, and now Business Sweden — giving him an unusually broad view of an industry that stretches far beyond the products consumers see on supermarket shelves. Agrifood encompasses everything from crop and animal production to aquaculture, food manufacturing, ingredients, and hospitality. And, as Skavén Ruben points out, some of its most interesting innovations are largely invisible. From food policy to foodtech investing Skavén Ruben started his career working for the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its Trade Council, mainly in New York – “I’m Swedish, though, so I sold out to the Danes,” he joked. After five years, he received a scholarship from Sweden to study international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. That was when he started focusing on food and agriculture because he felt everything traces back to food. “It’s the industry with the biggest environmental impact, and diet is a major risk factor for disease, disability, and premature death. Then there are issues around pandemics, antibiotic resistance, animal welfare, and so...
