CANADA – Provision Analytics, a startup with a software platform that simplifies food safety audits and analytics, has raised $6 million CAD (USD $4.75 million) for product development and sales expansion.

The round which closed in late November was spearheaded by Level 46 Investments, a private special-purpose entity established by the co-founders of TriWest Capital Partners. Other participants were Trailhead Capital, Serra Ventures, Waterpoint Lane, and Voyager, along with other private investors.

A representative from Level 46 is set to join Provision’s board of directors.

Provision also announced that DNV Global, which claims to be one of the world’s largest service providers for food safety and supply chain risk management took an undisclosed, “major” equity position in the company as part of a new partnership. The partnership with DNV Global will help Provision move into the European market.

Provision plans to use the funds for product development and sales expansion. Additionally, it intends to grow its workforce by 50 percent in the next year. The startup currently employs around 25 people.

The funding comes at a time when food regulators are changing policies to enforce food safety after a persistent growth in food recalls over the last decade.

United States Food and Drug Administration-related firms – which include food and cosmetic companies – reported 427 recalls by the end of 2021, according to the Food Safety News. During 2020, FDA-regulated firms reported 495 recalls.

Meanwhile, the world’s largest food safety standard body, GFSI, has adjusted its policies to require 100 percent audit scores, while the FDS has also started enforcing digital adoption for food product traceability, according to Provision.

Software aids in process control

Provision’s software is used for digital record-keeping in food safety. Customizable record templates contain automatic schedules, rules, and alerts that aid in process control. The process data is streamed into one central cloud for each client, allowing for faster audit completion and real-time process analytics, as highlighted by Provision.

The company claims that this helps food companies save time in proving regulatory compliance, while building management insight for safety, quality, and cost.

The startup also claims that, in the last year, Provision’s “signed revenue” has approximately tripled, and its software is now used in more than 50 percent of refrigerated food shipments in Canada.

The most recent round brings Provision’s total funding to $8.2 million CAD (USD $6.5 million). In 2020, the startup raised $3.2 million CAD (USD 2,557,184) in seed funding, according to Betakit.

That same year, Provision also acquired Crop Boss for an undisclosed amount, although the deal for the farm management software firm consisted of cash and equity.

Liked this article? Subscribe to Food Safety Africa News, our regular email newsletters with the latest news insights from Africa and the World’s food safety, quality and compliance. SUBSCRIBE HERE