Since our founding in 2021, CFIN has funded nearly 100 Canadian foodtech projects. We've been privileged to work with and support of Canada's most innovative foodtech companies, helping advance the sector into an unparalleled era of growth. In CFIN’s new Foodtech in Canada 2025 Ecosystem Report, we share everything we’ve learned along the way about Canada’s foodtech startup scene, now 200+ companies strong.
Calgary-based Knead Technologies is building crucial digital infrastructure that enables surplus food to be put to work, not to waste. Their "Uber for food waste" smart logistics platform connects donors—like grocery stores and wholesalers—to food rescue organizations. Since their founding in 2022, Knead’s platform has diverted potential food waste into 1.67 million meals while dramatically reducing carbon emissions. The company only continues to build momentum, having recently secured funding from CFIN’s Innovation Booster program and closed an $800,000 CAD pre-seed round.
The days of “Quorn” and plain blocks of tofu being the only plant-based protein alternatives are now long behind us. Yet, even amidst the recent explosion of sustainable, animal-free meat analogue options, New School Foods' whole-cut seafood alternative feels revolutionary. The Toronto-based startup’s cold-structuring scaffolding technology represents a monumental step forward in solving texture challenges, a major sticking point that continues to limit mainstream acceptance of plant-based protein alternatives.
As fisheries become increasingly strained under an ever-growing global demand for animal protein, New School’s ability to convincingly replicate the texture and cooking experience of salmon positions them to capture a massive market opportunity, while addressing one of the food industry’s most urgent sustainability challenges. In 2024, the company secured an $8-million CAD seed extension and began piloting its plant-based salmon fillets with a group of chefs. You can now find New School salmon on the menu at select restaurants—it really is something you must try to believe.
Founded in 2020, Montreal-based Opalia Foods has made rapid progress in using cell cultivated bovine mammary cells to produce real dairy milk — without a single cow being milked. Their breakthrough technology aims to address both environmental and ethical concerns in traditional dairy farming, while producing milk that retains the exact complexity and taste of conventional dairy.
Last year, the company closed a $2-million CAD investment round led by Hoogwegt Group, a Netherlands-based dairy ingredient provider. The funding, along with industry expertise and global network of Hoogwegt, is helping Opalia accelerate product development and prepare to bring their cell-cultivated dairy milk to market.
Montreal-based startup Relocalize recently secured $5.8-million CAD in seed funding to accelerate the deployment of their micro-factory systems. This follows a successful partnership with Southeastern Grocers—producing carbon-negative packaged ice on-demand at a Florida distribution center—that helped validate the company’s hyper-local, decentralized, and autonomous production technologies.
By eliminating middle-mile transportation and enabling hyper-local production of value-added products, Relocalize is fundamentally reimagining how food and beverages can be manufactured to make supply chains more efficient, resilient, and sustainable.
You can learn more about these innovators, along with the rest of Canada’s most influential foodtech companies, in CFIN’s new Foodtech in Canada 2025 Ecosystem Report.
Check out the full report here to discover all the movers and shakers currently transforming Canada’s food sector.