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Nestlé has announced a partnership with specialist agri-food venture capital fund The Yield Lab Latam, to invest in sustainable food production start-ups in the region.

The Yield Lab Latam invests in technology-based startups that operate in the agri-food industry to bring through technology solutions from food production to agricultural methods

Nestlé has committed investment to The Yield Lab Latam from its Sustainability Fund, which invests in innovative startups and organisations working in recycling and helping the food sector transition to regenerative agriculture.

Maxence de Royer, VP of strategy, business development & ESG for Nestlé Latin America Region, commented: “The investment from Nestlé and the partnership with The Yield Lab Latam will help us progress on finding sustainable solutions for the food industry.

“Investing in technological innovation in the agri-food sector and drawing on the energy and creativity of startups can help meet common goals such as reducing emissions and increasing biodiversity. This complements our own research work in the area, for example through our new Institute of Agricultural Sciences.”

Santiago Murtagh, MD of The Yield Lab Latam added: “The relationship with Nestlé reflects the common vision of committing ourselves and the food production ecosystem to jointly help address the challenges of the industry.

“We are leveraging our proximity to local entrepreneurial talent and the reach of our network of innovation centers. From this local position and the regional experience of having invested in seven Latin American countries, we can act as a bridge between investors in the food industry and innovative solutions for the sustainable production of healthy, nutritious, safe and accessible food for the next generations.”

Nestlé said it is committed to reduce its carbon footprint in the Latam region throughout its supply chain and its operations.

One area of particular focus has been the implementation of regenerative agriculture practices, especially in the dairy supply chain, where the company has already launched over 80 projects across 11 countries.

Yield Lab Latam is part of The Yield Lab, a global network of venture capital firms that has been operating since 2014 based in St. Louis, Missouri.

Morning update

On a quiet morning, the FTSE 100 has edged down another 0.1% to 7,619.9pts.

Risers include Hotel Chocolat, up 1.3% to 162p, Wynnstay, up 0.9% to 461.5p and THG, up 0.9% to 62.6p.

Fallers include McBride, down 8.3% to 26.6p, Sainsbury’s, down 3.6% to 268p and Just Eat Takeaway.com, down 3.2% to 1,114.1p. 

Yesterday in the City

The FTSE 100 edged down yesterday to close 0.1% down at 7,624.3pts.

Risers included Wynnstay Group, up 5.2% to 547.5p, Ocado, up 3.6% to 371.3p, Associated British Foods, up 3.1% 4o 1,896.5p, Nichols, up 2.7% to 1,006.5p, PayPoint, up 2.3% to 416.5p and Naked Wines, up 1.8% to 114.6p.

The day’s fallers included McBride, down 3.7% to 29p, PZ Cussons, down 2.4% to 187.8p, Deliveroo, down 2.1% to 110.1p, Greggs, down 1.6% to 2,692p, Just Eat Takeaway.com, down 1.5% to 1,151p, Bakkavor, down 1.3% to 94.6p, and Reckitt Benckiser, down 1.1% to 6,226p.