Investment Climate Podcast

Episode 101: Planetary: Charles Pontvianne on the 16M CHF Series A, licensing IP to sugar giants, and bypassing CapEx 
In this episode, I sit down with Charles Pontvianne, CFO of Planetary, a Swiss biotech startup that recently announced a massive 16 million CHF Series A co-led by Radical Capital and Oetker Group. Charles breaks down their highly unusual "middleman" equity story: instead of building their own massive fermentation facilities, Planetary licenses their biomanufacturing IP directly to legacy sugar producers, utilizing their existing infrastructure to upcycle sucrose side-streams into high-protein B2B ingredients. We discuss how Planetary successfully navigated the dreaded "Food-for-Fuel" ethical bottleneck by producing "Food-for-Food," and how getting retail giant Aldi to reorder their vegan chicken fillet was the ultimate commercial derisking mechanism for their Series A investors. 
🎧 Listen to the full episode to hear Charles explain the exact structure of their data room and why treating your fundraise like selling a house is critical to creating VC FOMO. 

Key Facts Planetary:
Charles Pontvianne: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlespontvianne/
Website: https://www.planetarygroup.ch/
Headquarters: Switzerland 
Goal: To act as the missing link between industrial agriculture and FoodTech by licensing biomanufacturing IP to global carbohydrate/sugar producers, upcycling their sucrose side-streams into Mycoprotein ingredients for the B2B market.
Milestone: Closed a 16 million CHF Series A (co-led by Radical Capital and Oetker Group) while successfully scaling up a 50 cubic meter fermentation plant in Switzerland and launching a Mycoprotein-based vegan chicken fillet in Aldi.

Blurb
PLANETARY is a Swiss full-stack fermentation platform building and operating a global network of biomanufacturing facilities. Their proprietary BioBlocks™ fermentation and AI platform handles scale-up, process optimization, and production across three verticals: mycoprotein ingredients, precision fermentation-derived products, and bio-based materials. They are infrastructure-as-a-service for the bioeconomy — clients access Planetary's facilities, platform, and expertise to get fermentation-based products to market with optimized COGS and sustainability metrics.

Episode 101: Planetary: Charles Pontvianne on the 16M CHF Series A, licensing IP to sugar giants, and bypassing CapEx 
In this episode, I sit down with Charles Pontvianne, CFO of Planetary, a Swiss biotech startup that recently announced a massive 16 million CHF Series A co-led by Radical Capital and Oetker Group. Charles breaks down their highly unusual "middleman" equity story: instead of building their own massive fermentation facilities, Planetary licenses their biomanufacturing IP directly to legacy sugar producers, utilizing their existing infrastructure to upcycle sucrose side-streams into high-protein B2B ingredients. We discuss how Planetary successfully navigated the dreaded "Food-for-Fuel" ethical bottleneck by producing "Food-for-Food," and how getting retail giant Aldi to reorder their vegan chicken fillet was the ultimate commercial derisking mechanism for their Series A investors. 
🎧 Listen to the full episode to hear Charles explain the exact structure of their data room and why treating your fundraise like selling a house is critical to creating VC FOMO. 

Key Facts Planetary:
Charles Pontvianne: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlespontvianne/
Website: https://www.planetarygroup.ch/
Headquarters: Switzerland 
Goal: To act as the missing link between industrial agriculture and FoodTech by licensing biomanufacturing IP to global carbohydrate/sugar producers, upcycling their sucrose side-streams into Mycoprotein ingredients for the B2B market.
Milestone: Closed a 16 million CHF Series A (co-led by Radical Capital and Oetker Group) while successfully scaling up a 50 cubic meter fermentation plant in Switzerland and launching a Mycoprotein-based vegan chicken fillet in Aldi.

Blurb
PLANETARY is a Swiss full-stack fermentation platform building and operating a global network of biomanufacturing facilities. Their proprietary BioBlocks™ fermentation and AI platform handles scale-up, process optimization, and production across three verticals: mycoprotein ingredients, precision fermentation-derived products, and bio-based materials. They are infrastructure-as-a-service for the bioeconomy — clients access Planetary's facilities, platform, and expertise to get fermentation-based products to market with optimized COGS and sustainability metrics.

Episode 100: Scannabull: Dan Bull on non-dilutive government hacks, dodging the OpenAI threat, and the $1.1M pre-seed pitch 
In this episode, I sit down with Dan Bull, CEO of Scannabull, a New Zealand-based AgTech startup utilizing 3D imagery and edge-device machine learning to accurately weigh livestock. Dan breaks down the exact timeline of their $1.1M NZD pre-seed round, explaining how an early introduction from their first major customer (Silver Fern Farms) unlocked backing from Sprout AgriTech and Enterprise Angels, which subsequently triggered a highly favorable, non-dilutive $750k government loan. We dive into the tactical ways founders can handle the inevitable "won't OpenAI just crush you?" objection, and why targeting farmers as a primary customer is a mistake. 
🎧 Listen to the full episode to hear how Dan plans to monetize Scannabull by selling data directly to massive meat processors rather than charging cash-strapped farmers. 

Key Facts Scannabull:
Dan Bull: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danjbull1/
Website: https://scanabull.com/
Headquarters: New Zealand 
Goal: To illuminate the "black box" of the beef supply chain by allowing farmers to weigh 600kg animals instantly using 3D imagery on edge devices (iPhones and custom paddock hardware).
Milestone: Raised $1.1M NZD via a combination of VC backing (Sprout AgriTech), an Angel syndicate (Enterprise Angels), and a non-dilutive 3% revenue-repayable loan from the New Zealand government’s Callaghan Innovation Fund.

Blurb
Scanabull is a New Zealand AgTech company making cattle weighing effortless. Based in the Waikato region — one of the world's most storied livestock innovation hubs — Scanabull brings together a proven team with genuine rural roots, AgTech expertise, and deep software capability. Their technology delivers clear, actionable weight intelligence that helps farmers and processors maximize value while keeping animals healthy and well-managed. Simple premise, significant impact: when you know the weight, you know the animal.

Episode 99: SHIFT Invest: Jonas von den Driesch on the €8M Food Forecast Series A and why European VCs run Due Diligence Post-Term Sheet 
In this episode, I sit down with Jonas von den Driesch, an investor at SHIFT Invest, a Dutch impact venture capital fund that just launched its fourth fund with a first close of €90M. Jonas breaks down the exact timeline and thesis behind their recent €8M Series A co-lead investment in Food Forecast, an AI-driven platform optimizing ultra-fresh bakery production to eliminate food waste. We dive deep into the cultural nuances of European venture capital, specifically why it is standard practice to run heavy, external due diligence after a term sheet has already been signed. Jonas also explains why non-Dutch startups must have commercial proof points to secure funding, and how Food Forecast proved its "land and expand" growth model within enterprise bakery accounts. 
🎧 Listen to the full episode to hear Jonas's take on the SaaS AI threat and why a proprietary "data moat" is the only way to survive the rise of LLMs like Claude. 

Key Facts SHIFT Invest:
Jonas von den Driesch: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonas-von-den-driesch/?locale=en
Website: https://shiftinvest.com/
Headquarters: Amstelveen, Netherlands
Goal: To combat climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource depletion by leading or co-leading Seed and Series A rounds across Food & Ag, Energy, Mobility, and Green Industries.
Milestone: Recently launched "Shift IV" with a €90M first close, actively deploying €500K to €4M initial checks across Northwestern Europe while targeting 10%–20% ownership stakes.

Blurb
SHIFT is an impact-first venture capital fund with 14 years and 65+ portfolio companies behind it — backing innovative startups with the potential to meaningfully restore the balance between nature and society. Where conventional investors stop, SHIFT steps in: taking the financial and impact risks required to accelerate the sustainability transition across smart food and agriculture, green industries, energy transition, and sustainable mobility and logistics. SHIFT invests from pre-seed through commercial scale, combining growth capital with deep impact expertise, a high-value partner network, and the long-term commitment — including follow-on capacity — that early-stage environmental entrepreneurs actually need to succeed.

Episode 98: Cosaic: Tomas Turner on surviving Corporate VC Due Diligence and the 1% Conversion Rate Reality 
In this episode, I sit down with Tomas Turner, CEO and Co-founder of Cosaic, a biomass fermentation startup producing highly functional yeast-based ingredients to replace additives, milk, and eggs. Tomas walks us through the grueling realities of closing a $6M round led by DSM-Firmenich’s CVC arm. We discuss why Corporate VC due diligence is fundamentally different—and far more rigorous on IP and Tech—than standard VC vetting. Tomas also opens up his fundraising pipeline, revealing the raw math required to close a multi-million dollar Seed round today: 250 targets, 60+ initial meetings, and countless rejections just to secure three new investors. 
🎧 Listen to the full episode to hear Tomas explain the "pharma model" of FoodTech and why you should never try to negotiate a corporate term sheet with lawyers in the room. 

Key Facts Eatable Adventures:
Tomas Turner: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomas-turner95/
Website: https://www.cosaic.bio/
Headquarters: Horgen, Switzerland
Goal: To utilize biomass fermentation to curate clean-label fat and protein fibers that mask off-notes, provide astringency masking, and function as egg/dairy replacements.
Milestone: Closed a $6M funding round led by DSM-Firmenich Venturing, supported by existing investors (Navus Ventures, Founderful) and a new Swiss Family Office.

Blurb
Cosaic is a science-driven ingredients company building resilient food systems that keep pace with evolving consumer demand. Powered by a fast-moving team of scientists, engineers, and business builders, Cosaic combines rigorous in-house R&D — including an advanced pilot lab for real-condition testing — with a relentless commitment to continuous optimization. They don't just claim what their ingredients can do; they know it. Ambitious by nature and customer-centric by design, Cosaic works alongside food industry partners to deliver solutions that push the boundaries of what's been imagined possible.