Jan 9, 2018
AgroFresh Solutions invests $10 million in It’s Fresh!

AgroFresh Solutions, a company specializing in produce freshness solutions has invested $10 million for a 15 percent ownership stake in and entered into a commercial agreement with Food Freshness Technology Holdings Limited (FFT), providers of It’s Fresh! ethylene removal filters.

“This commercial agreement provides a creative approach to gaining access to ground-breaking technologies as well as entering into unique collaborations to accelerate our retail growth strategy. We expect FFT’s It’s Fresh! technology to complement the RipeLock Quality System, our retail solution for extending the freshness of bananas. Through the commercial agreement, AgroFresh will gain access to It’s Fresh! Ethylene Removal Filters, adding a new technology offering for high value crops such as berries, stone fruit, avocadoes, tomatoes and cherries, and opening up new opportunities to address food waste in retail,” said Jordi Ferre, CEO of AgroFresh.

“Our investment in FFT will enable us not only to participate in its growth, but will also accelerate our penetration of food freshness solutions for retail,” Ferre said. “We are excited to work with FFT to offer their It’s Fresh! product to our extensive global roster of fruit growers and enhance the value of the solutions we deliver for them. Our relationship with FFT is further evidence of our commitment to capitalize on the growth opportunities emerging in the $1 trillion food preservation and waste reduction industry.”

FFT, headquartered in Cranfield, UK, markets its unique ethylene filters under the “It’s Fresh!” brand to retailers, growers and exporters in North America, EMEA and Latin America. FFT’s filters create a protective ‘Freshasphere’ around fruit and vegetables, significantly improve the quality of fruits and vegetables, reducing waste and increasing sales.

Peter Shalson, CEO of Food Freshness Technology, said, “We are excited by AgroFresh’s investment and their ability to extend our commercialreach through AgroFresh’s strong brand and global distribution network. Both companies share a common culture and an unwavering commitment to developing new solutions to the growing problem of food waste, especially at retail. Under this commercial agreement, we will work cooperatively to grow our market share in the retail and grower segments.”

Furthermore, the companies’ respective R&D teams will work together to further their mutual goal of improving food quality. Although both companies will continue to operate independently, a key goal of the mutual collaboration is to increase penetration of each company’s respective technology at leading retailers. Where FFT has developed strong retailer relationships, it will serve as a sales agent for AgroFresh’s RipeLock program and AgroFresh will correspondingly do the same for FFT’s It’s Fresh!  filters with AgroFresh’s retail partners.

To learn more about Food Freshness Technology and the It’s Fresh! products visit FFT’s website at http://www.itsfresh.com.




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