Food waste startup receives backing from John Conroy’s Redesdale food fund
Article Published: Tue 06 Jan 2025 at 12:00 | Business Post
The Redesdale food fund, led by financier John Conroy, has invested in the Irish-based company Positive Carbon, which recently developed an AI system to manage food waste.
In a statement on Tuesday, the fund said it had received co-investment from Enterprise Ireland for the investment in Positive Carbon, as the Dublin-based food-tech company seeks to tackle food waste in commercial kitchens.
It comes after Positive Carbon, which was founded in 2020 by Aisling Kirwan and Mark Kirwan, developed a fully automated AI-enabled monitoring system to help businesses reduce waste and their carbon footprints.
Redesdale said the investment would “drive the advancement of core technology,” advancing its Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities to “deliver even deeper insights for kitchen teams.”
Furthermore, the investment would “fuel international expansion,” it said, “bringing Positive Carbon’s solution to a wider market across the UK, Europe, and beyond.”
Positive Carbon’s AI monitoring system is currently in use in venues such as Croke Park, the Aviva Stadium, and the Guinness storehouse, as well as operating in numerous HSE hospitals, Redesdale said.
Mark Kirwan, chief executive of Positive Carbon, said securing investment from Redesdale and Enterprise Ireland was a “massive vote of confidence in our technology and our team.”
“This funding allows us to not only refine our AI capabilities but also to aggressively expand our footprint internationally,” he added.
Michael Cantwell, partner at Redesdale, said the company was “delighted to be partnering with an Irish company in the food space which has a clear and ambitious plan for international expansion.”
In November, the Redesdale food fund invested more than €1 million in AI tech startup Talio Technologies.
The fund targets early-stage food, beverage and nutrition companies, while Talio uses artificial intelligence to spot future trends in the food and drinks space and helps companies develop products that are aligned to real market demand.
Kerry Group and Valeo Group are clients of Talio and use its technology.