Juliette holds an engineering degree in agronomy from AgroParisTech. Her journey into science began during her preparatory studies, where she was inspired by a former student conducting research on a vaccine for HIV. This sparked her initial interest in the field, leading her to an internship in immunology in 2014.
Despite a fascinating start in research, Juliette was eager for new challenges and decided to pivot towards the venture capital space. In 2016, she joined Seventure Partners, where she worked as an analyst in the Health for Life fund. Here, she discovered her passion for venture capital, engaging with brilliant founders and innovative projects, particularly in the health sector. Her experience in health investments solidified her desire to work at the intersection of innovation, sustainability, and impact.
In 2021, Juliette took the next step in her career by joining Capagro, a venture capital firm focused on agtech and foodtech. She began as a financial analyst and, through her dedication and expertise, quickly advanced to her current role as senior associate. At Capagro, Juliette supports innovative entrepreneurs working on sustainable food systems, actively fostering impactful solutions that can shape the future of agrifood. She specialized in alternative proteins, packaging for food and ag robotics. Her deep passion for the sector is evident in her drive to create lasting change, supporting projects that address global challenges in food security, health, and sustainability.
On October 21-22, the European Innovation Council (EIC) announced 72 new deep tech scale-ups joining the prestigious EIC Scaling Club at the Scale 100 Forum in Athens, Greece. This vibrant community of over 120 promising European scale-ups is carefully curated to drive growth, innovation, and impact across multiple critical global sectors. The EIC Scaling Club unites some of Europe’s brightest minds, including scale-up founders, corporate innovators, investors, and industry leaders, with the shared goal of fostering the growth of companies primed to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges.
Emilie Abrams has dedicated over a decade to harnessing the power of the agri-food sector as a force for positive environmental, social, and economic change. Her journey began during her university studies in Philadelphia, where she engaged with a social enterprise addressing issues of poor nutrition. This social commitment continued when she moved to New York, where she helped provide children’s meals, strengthening her understanding of the challenges in accessing nutritious food.
Driven by a desire to explore the complexities of the Mexican agrifood value chain, Emilie started working for a regenerative farm in Mexico City, witnessing firsthand the transformative potential of sustainable practices. She spent the following two years building the food and agriculture community for Endeavor in Mexico, empowering entrepreneurs and fostering collaboration within the sector.
During the COVID pandemic, she earned her MBA from INSEAD and transitioned to a Senior Consultant role at Dalberg Advisors. Her passion for supporting entrepreneurs led her to Yield Lab, where she started operations for Yield Lab Latam in Mexico before joining the team in Europe. Based in Paris she is now an Investment Associate at Yield Lab Europe and a Principal at Yield Lab Latam where she identifies transformative investment opportunities and nurtures the next generation of agrifood innovators.
Daniel Skaven Ruben helps advance the future of food in a number of ways. He’s a 10x advisor to — and 30x angel investor in — global FoodTech and AgTech startups. He’s a venture partner / operating advisor to VCs Mudcake (Sweden), Nordic FoodTech VC (Finland) and Blume Equity (UK). He’s a mentor at accelerators Big Idea Ventures, Katapult, and Norrsken Accelerator. He’s the Founding Editor of newsletter FoodTech Weekly, and Founding Partner of Solvable Syndicate, which invests in early-stage impact FoodTech and AgTech startups globally. He also co-founded the foodtech podcast The Appetizer. Daniel was a consultant to The Rockefeller Foundation Food Initiative during 2017-2021, supporting the Foundation’s work to advance a more nourishing and sustainable food system. Daniel has also worked as an expert for the World Bank in Washington D.C. (2015-2016) on issues around technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship. Prior to that, he served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark in various roles in Stockholm and New York for more than half a decade, helping Danish tech companies to internationalize. Daniel holds a BSc in International Business (Copenhagen Business School), an LLM in Public International Law (Stockholm University), and an MSc in Foreign Service (Georgetown University).
Manuella is an entrepreneur and climate tech expert turned VC. She invests in early-stage startups fixing the food system at Mudcake. Manuella spent a decade working at the intersection of impact and technology and now regularly serves as a mentor and jury on startup programs. She previously co-founded Good Tech Lab and Climatescape. As CEO at Climatescape (Techstars’21), she led a data platform mapping 2000+ climate tech solutions. As COO of Good Tech Lab, she consulted for Fortune500 companies, foundations, and the UN. She co-authored “The Frontiers of Impact Tech”, interviewing 500+ leaders in 30 countries about the SDGs and scientific innovations. A Brazilian living in Paris, Manuella speaks 5 languages and holds a Master’s degree from SciencesPo.
Standing Ovation, which has previously raised €12 million in 2022 through a Series A led by Astanor Ventures and backed by Bel Group, has now secured an additional €3.75 million in a Series A+ round. This brings its total funding over the past four years to €23 million, aimed at accelerating growth and scaling production.
The French Foodtech company, specializing in precision-fermented protein, has also announced Yvan CHARDONNENS as its new CEO.
She resonates deeply with Josh Wolf’s quote: “I’m a voracious reader, absorbing all I can find, especially from rare or undiscovered sources.” Like those she admires, her curiosity drives her to seek knowledge from unexpected places, constantly exploring new ideas and perspectives. This passion for learning fuels her work as a business analyst, where she helps startups navigate the complex world of fundraising and growth.
Capucine Grandsir is a biological engineer specialised in food science. She is often described as curious and stubborn. She can spend hours trying to understand a complex subject, especially if it deals with food. The projects she evaluates and the entrepreneurs she meets make her optimistic about the evolution of consumption patterns.
