This investment carries considerable risks and may lead to a loss of the entire assets invested. Projected returns cannot be guaranteed and may be lower than expected.
The first is in Berlin - many are to follow: Over the next few years, StadtFarms (city farms) will be set up to produce sustainable fish and vegetables. To achieve this professional scaling, our team must grow - so that cities throughout Germany will soon be able to indulge with a clear conscience.
BE Food and StadtFarm arouse international interest
A few days ago, the StadtFarm was visited by a high-profile visitor: the Australian Minister of Agriculture came to find out about our water-conserving AquaTerraPonik technology.
The market for locally produced food is growing continuously - the future concept for large cities is urban farming.
This is because global food production faces considerable challenges:
- A growing population increases the demand for food.
- More than half of the world's population no longer lives in rural areas but in urban areas.
- Ecological responsibility with regard to greenhouse gas emissions, soil damage, and agricultural practices is increasing.
- and much more.
In order to meet these challenges and produce food locally and sustainably in urban areas, we developed our AquaTerraPonik technology - a locally scalable closed loop system for the production of fish, vegetables, and tropical fruits.
Based on this technology, our first commercial StadtFarm (city farm) for the urban production of 50 tons of fish and 30 tons of vegetables per year was launched as an initial pilot project in 2017.
This first StadtFarm will generate sales of EUR 300,000 in 2018 and EUR 500,000 annually from 2019 onwards.
Since then, we have received dozens of requests from potential partners from all over the world to implement our StadtFarm concept.
In order to meet this demand, we now want to grow in a decentralized way through joint ventures with partners.
The respective local partners will be responsible for production and sales, while we will be responsible for project planning, technical support, staff training, marketing, and product development.
This is the only way to create a strong collective brand that stands for high quality and urban agriculture.
There is no comprehensive offer like ours on the market. In Europe, there are two other suppliers in the aquaponics sector who offer systems for commercial production but do not produce food themselves and thus leave their customers to their own devices.
As of today, we are conducting about a dozen discussions with potential partners parallel to one another and have already signed the first LoIs (letters of intent).
Using the Companisto investment, we aim to build and expand our team to ensure efficient execution during the rollout.
BE Food AG offers partners the StadtFarm concept via a joint venture model with central services.
What is StadtFarm?
At the StadtFarm, we design, build and operate AquaTerraPonik plants in which fish, vegetables, and tropical fruits can be produced and sold in urban areas.
Our unique AquaTerraPonik technology is based on the ability of fish and vegetables to thrive in a single water cycle: The excrements of the fish are the fertilizer for the plants, while the plants purify the water for the fish - in a complex biochemical ecosystem. We do not exchange water, we only refill what is consumed.
Each StadtFarm produces 50 tons of fish and 30 to 35 tons of vegetables per year.
Advantages of the StadtFarm
Standardized:
Each StadtFarm consists of a 2,500 m² greenhouse, divided into fish farms and three climate zones including a visitor center near the tropical plants.
Smart:
Thanks to constant remote technical monitoring, operational safety is guaranteed and human errors can be detected and corrected immediately.
Ultra-local:
The immediate proximity to the customer avoids transport routes and brings the products to the table fresher than anyone else can.
Advantages of the System
Expertise:
We compile the optimal modules together with our partners on the basis of our experience from sales in Berlin across various channels, from farm shops to gastronomy and online shops to retail.
Cost efficient:
Central purchasing also reduces costs.
Central product development:
Our product development guarantees constant innovations in the portfolio of processed goods (e.g. fish sausages or stevia ketchup).
Central marketing:
And finally, central marketing enables a uniform, strong presence under the "StadtFarm" brand.
We do not consider ourselves vendors of technology, but as a food brand, because this is the only way to ensure that we always focus on ensuring that our partners produce as sustainably and inexpensively as possible, even in the context of ongoing technical development.
After the start of our pilot project StadtFarm Berlin, BE Food AG now offers its business concept via a decentralized system in order to quickly scale it. Joint venture partnerships give our partners the right to build and operate local StadtFarms in other cities (several StadtFarms are possible per city). For this purpose, we set up a joint venture with the respective partner, in which BE Food AG has a 25.1 % stake and the respective partner 74.9 %.
We generate income from the project planning of new plants for partners on the one hand, and from annual fees for centrally provided services such as technical support, product development, and marketing on the other.
We want to accompany our partner producers starting with the project planning of the plant and train the employees in our headquarters in Berlin during the construction phase. We guarantee high quality in the operational processes by means of detailed process descriptions.
All important input materials for the plant (e.g. fish food) are ordered centrally through us, and the recipes for the processed products also come from us. We can thus guarantee a uniform taste and quality.
BE Food builds StadtFarms for our partners, who may operate these exclusively under this brand. Our technology was developed for more than 5 years and is constantly being improved upon.
We are the only ones that can produce commercially in a single, closed cycle - which creates tremendous sustainability for the food we produce. For example, StadtFarm food saves 80% of water, 80% of land and 85% of greenhouse gas emissions compared to conventional products and produces without antibiotics, pesticides, hormones, or artificial fertilizers.
Our technology is protected by the complexity of the equipment. We have been offering guided tours for many years (even through our laboratory plant!), nobody has yet copied even individual elements of it. Therefore, we decided against patents, for which we would have to disclose many interfaces and functionalities.
Competitors in the market for urban farming and in particular the fish/greenhouse network are manageable; there are two suppliers in Europe. Both sell technology instead of a complete package with support and a unique brand.
We already have interested parties from all parts of Germany and several other countries. We are conducting more in-depth negotiations with around a dozen locations. To date, preliminary agreements have been signed with partners in four different cities and a feasibility study for Sao Paulo (Brazil).
We also have local cooperation agreements with IKEA and BioCompany to operate sales stands on their premises. We can also draw attention to ourselves by offering joint events such as workshops.
The partners with whom we are currently negotiating new locations are very different. Among them are architects and urban developers, supermarket operators, family offices, and large social institutions/associations, which usually become aware of us through the press.
The customers of the food produced by StadtFarms mainly fall into three categories:
- Consumers shopping via the online shop and the farm shop
- Gastronomes who are contacted weekly by the sales department
- and the operators of local retail structures (e.g. BioCompany, Edeka, Rewe)
They all appreciate food that is produced sustainably and "ultra-local". In contrast to other food products, especially fish is bought by women and men in equal parts, whereby we attract loyal clients by selling fish balls and the like for children on the one hand and through educational work for kindergartens and school classes on the other.
Germany alone, about 1.3 million tons of fish are consumed annually, in Europe the figure is 12 million tons. Consumption is increasing worldwide every year. Even with 100 StadtFarms, we would only cover 0.4% of fish consumption in Germany - for vegetables we would barely attain measurable per mille ranges.
We started with the first StadtFarm in Berlin in 2017. 50 tons of fish and 30 tons of vegetables are now sold through the farm shop, online shop, local gastronomy, and markets or pop-up stores; retail trade will follow soon. Thousands of people visit us every year for guided tours and on market days, dozens of restaurants buy our products.
In 2017, we also presented ourselves to guests from all over the world with our own stand at the International Horticultural Exhibition (IGA) for six months; RBB accompanied both in several contributions. The many press reports that followed have already enabled us to conduct numerous discussions with interested parties - which has ultimately shaped our business model into the form it has today.
In 2019, two more StadtFarms are to be launched, one of these in Berlin. We also plan to design one to two additional locations per quarter and build them following the receipt of the building permit. By the end of 2020, we expect to have 10 StadtFarms in operation; conservatively planned, 10 additional locations will follow each year.
Level 1: EUR 100,000
Upon reaching the investment threshold, we can significantly strengthen our image and perfect the design of the StadtFarm brand with the help of an agency.
Level 2: EUR 500,000
In addition to the measures of Level 1
Upon reaching Level 2 of EUR 500,000, it is possible to add two core people to our team: a COO with a clear focus on implementation to support Anne-Kathrin in business development. In addition, this will allow us to speed up negotiations with locations on the one hand and will facilitate the necessary preparations such as manuals etc. on the other.
Secondly, we will expand our team to include an engineer for project planning and construction supervision at the various locations.
Our business model will carry itself from then on. At the same time, of course, we are conducting conversations with other investors in order to be able to quickly implement additional expansion steps and plans (e.g. the production of our own vegetarian fish food).
JPX Investment GmbH, led by Dr. Johannes Pölzl, invested in the company from the very beginning. We have come to appreciate him very much as a competent partner over the past year, as he has supported us with his many years of experience in structuring our processes and contributed his strong analytical skills to our strategic development.
We would be pleased to receive
- Contacts to press representatives
- Contacts to possible location partners in larger cities
- Likes on Facebook/propagation on social media
Why are we interested in sustainable food production in the city?
About a third of our ecological footprint results from our diet. But to abstain due to a bad conscience is not sexy.
Therefore, we want to offer delicious alternatives that combine culinary indulgence with environmental protection. For as many people as possible in as many places as possible.
from left to right:
Anne conceives events and marketing campaigns, Markus developed the technology, Janine is responsible for our marketing & social media, Anne-Kathrin is our board member, Tina completes us in business development.
BE Food AG
Treskowallee 123
10318 Berlin
+49 30 60988103-0
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