Ganiga, an Italian deep-tech startup developing computer-vision and robotics solutions for food waste reduction, has closed a €2.5 million funding round to accelerate the commercialisation of its technology across European food-service markets.
The round comprised €1.5 million in equity investment complemented by a €1 million Smart&Start Italia government incentive, according to an announcement by the Pisa-based company. Vivenda led the investment, with participation from venture capital firm NextStep and several business angels backing the initiative.
Ganiga’s core offering, the HooolyFood platform, uses artificial intelligence and computer vision to monitor and quantify food waste in collective catering environments such as company canteens and school cafeterias. The system provides operators with detailed data on what is discarded, which dishes generate the most waste, and identifies patterns that inform operational decisions.
Scaling Operations and Market Expansion
The fresh capital will support three primary objectives: strengthening Ganiga’s technical and commercial workforce, industrialising the HooolyFood solution and its proprietary data platform, and accelerating the growth of recurring revenue streams. The company plans to expand its addressable market beyond collective catering into hotels and broader food-service sectors.
Nicolas Zeoli, Founder and CEO of Ganiga, highlighted the practical impact of the technology: “With this round we bring to industrial scale a technology that is already operational in the field. For a canteen, knowing what is wasted, which dish and why, provides concrete data to base purchases, menus and service organisation on.”
The funding validates the demand for automated waste-reduction tools in a sector where food waste represents both an economic loss and an environmental challenge. According to industry estimates, European catering operations typically discard between 10 and 15 percent of prepared food daily, translating to significant costs and sustainability concerns.
Addressing a Pressing Market Need
Ganiga’s solution addresses converging pressures: rising operational costs, increasingly stringent environmental regulations, and growing corporate sustainability commitments. By digitalising waste tracking, the platform enables data-driven decision-making that can reduce disposal costs while supporting ESG objectives.
The participation of Smart&Start Italia, an Italian government initiative supporting deep-tech and innovative startups, underscores the strategic importance placed on such technologies at the policy level. The investment reflects broader European efforts to combat food waste through technological innovation, particularly within the circular economy framework.
With this funding, Ganiga joins a growing cohort of European deep-tech startups leveraging artificial intelligence and robotics to solve sustainability challenges. As the continent grapples with food security and waste management objectives outlined in the European Green Deal, solutions that combine hardware and software to optimise resource utilisation are increasingly attracting investor attention and public support.