Omnivore hits $150m first close on Fund III

Indian venture capital firm Omnivore Partners has held a $150 million first close on its third vehicle, Omnivore Agritech & Climate Sustainability Fund.

The firm was targeting $130 million for the vehicle, according to co-founder and managing partner Mark Kahn, which has already been surpassed. Omnivore did not disclose a new target for the fund or its hard-cap.

First close investors include KfW, Louis Dreyfus Company Ventures and Yara Growth Ventures. The vehicle also received support from government backed investors and development finance institutions including the IFC, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Self Reliant India Fund, the Dutch Good Growth Fund, FMO, and the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO).

Omnivore invests across farmer platforms and fintech, precision agriculture, agrifood life sciences, farm-to-consumer brands, post-harvest technologies and B2B agri marketplaces.

Kahn said in a statement that Fund III will have a greater focus on start-ups that are addressing climate mitigation and climate adaption.

“The greatest risk and opportunity for Indian agriculture are the adverse effects of climate change. Our new fund will have a sharper focus on catalyzing climate action in agriculture by funding startups addressing climate mitigation and climate adaptation,” Kahn said.

Fund III is expected to make 25-30 investments in Seed and Series A rounds in agtech start-ups and MSMEs, with investment sizes ranging between $1 million and $5 million.

Omnivore closed its second fund on $82 million in April 2019 and is almost fully deployed. Some of the firm’s portfolio companies include DeHaat, Arya, Stellapps, Reshamandi, Ecozen, Aquaconnect and Pixxel.

The VC firm has had exits in businesses including aquaculture Internet of Things start-up Eruvaka, which was acquired by Nutreco for around $50 million in 2022. Omnivore also exited precision spraying manufacturer MITRA Agri Equipment to Indian conglomerate Mahindra & Mahindra in March 2023.

Omnivore managing partner Jinesh Shah said in a statement: “We are grateful to our investors who share Omnivore’s vision of making India an agritech superpower, which positively impacts the lives of smallholder farmers globally.”