German consumers discard 4.4 million tonnes of food annually, equating to around €6 billion. Austrian startup Afreshed is banking on consolidation over competition, acquiring Munich’s Etepetete and securing a mid-seven-figure sum to expand its organic rescue-box model to new markets.
The acquisition, announced Monday, merges the two largest “ugly produce” subscription services in the German-speaking region. Founded in Linz in 2021 by Lukas Forsthuber, Bernhard Bocksrucker, and Maximilian Welzenbach, Afreshed offers boxes of organic produce that do not meet retail cosmetic standards. The model has been successful, with €4.7 million in revenue by 2023, aiming for eight figures in 2024, and breaking even in Austria.
Etepetete, operating from the Munich Wholesale Market since 2015, was founded by Georg Lindermair, Carsten Wille, and Christopher Hallhuber. By acquisition time, it had delivered over 250,000 boxes, rescuing more than 1.5 million kilograms of produce. In 2023, Etepetete raised €1.79 million through crowdfunding on Econeers, attracting 812 private investors.
The strategic rationale is clear. Afreshed, with its tech-first operations, dominates Austria with a delivery network, a fleet of 20 vehicles, and proprietary emissions-reducing route-planning software. Its gap was in Germany, a market ten times larger. Etepetete had already captured customers across all 16 German states, especially dense in Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, and Berlin, yet appeared stagnated post-crowdfunding without further institutional funding.
“The founding philosophy of both companies is essentially the same,” stated Forsthuber. Afreshed opted to purchase, rather than build, a German customer base. Co-founder Bocksrucker indicated Etepetete will remain a separate brand, hinting at further acquisitions to become “the leading provider of rescued food in German-speaking regions.”
No price was disclosed for the acquisition.
Another significant aspect of the deal is Raiffeisen-Holding Niederösterreich-Wien acquiring a 25.1% stake in Afreshed. This mid-seven-figure investment will fund the expansion in Germany and advance technology development.
Afreshed gains a notable portfolio neighbour with Raiffeisen-Holding’s participation, which includes Agrana and Neoh. Raiffeisen and Agrana jointly committed €5 million to Berlin-based fund FoodLabs. This investment by Raiffeisen signals a belief in the rescue-box model as a viable food distribution channel, beyond just a sustainability initiative.
Fresh fruit and vegetables constitute a large share of household food waste in Europe, around 35%, with retailers rejecting substandard cosmetic produce, and consumers purchasing perishables they do not consume.
Rescue-box companies like Afreshed address this by buying produce that would otherwise waste away, benefiting from lower raw-material costs and demand predictability through subscriptions. However, challenges exist; the US equivalent, Imperfect Foods, was acquired by Instacart after facing scaling difficulties, and UK-based Oddbox, despite raising £16 million, remains in the UK.
Afreshed aims for dominance across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. While the Etepetete deal provides a German entry, turning that entry into a profitable venture requires replicating its Austrian logistics, centered on its delivery fleet and software.
The broader European startup ecosystem sees increasing consolidation, with M&A transactions doubling in Europe’s growth-company segment by 2025, as interest rates rise and organic growth costs soar. In food tech, well-funded startups are acquiring those that didn’t secure follow-on funding.
Whether Afreshed can profitably expand the model over three countries is uncertain. However, as a breakeven Austrian operator acquiring rather than building a customer base, it presents an alternative approach in a sector fraught with venture-capital-driven growth attempts.