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Evolv Ventures
Evolv Ventures opened in 2017 when Kraft Heinz committed $100 million to a corporate venture fund run out of Chicago with an explicit mandate: invest in...
Evolv Ventures
Evolv Ventures opened in 2017 when Kraft Heinz committed $100 million to a corporate venture fund run out of Chicago with an explicit mandate: invest in the future of food without the bureaucracy that typically slows corporate VC. Bill Pescatello, a veteran of Connecticut Innovations and the venture ecosystem, was tapped as Managing Partner. The structure was deliberately set apart from Kraft Heinz headquarters, giving the team autonomy to move at market speed on term sheets while drawing on the parent company's distribution scale and R&D depth when founders wanted it. The fund targets early-stage companies across the food value chain, spanning supply chain software, alternative proteins, direct-to-consumer brands, food waste reduction, and ingredient innovation. It operates as a direct investor, typically leading or co-leading seed and Series A rounds. Confirmed portfolio companies include Grin, a Brazilian last-mile logistics platform for consumer goods (per Bloomberg, 2019); and Afresh, an AI-powered inventory management system for grocery fresh departments (per the firm, 2020). The firm also backed Wiliot's battery-free Bluetooth tags for supply chain tracking and launched an Artist-in-Residence program aimed at bridging food science with creative capital. Pescatello's team operates from Chicago, with deal sourcing concentrated in North America but extending to Latin America and Israel. Kraft Heinz reaffirmed its commitment to the vehicle in 2020 despite broader corporate restructuring, converting the initial commitment into a permanent fund structure. In October 2023, Evolv participated in the $115 million Series B for Meati Foods, the mycelium-based whole-cut protein startup, alongside Revolution Growth and Grosvenor Food & AgTech. What distinguishes Evolv from most corporate VCs is the permanent capital structure and absence of a strategic-only mandate. The firm can — and does — invest in companies that may never sell to Kraft Heinz. The governance separates the investment committee from the parent company's quarterly-earnings rhythm, letting Pescatello's team write checks against a decade-plus horizon that mirrors the biology cycle of food innovation.
General information
Firm type
Venture Capital
Year founded
2017
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Chicago
Corporate office
Chicago, IL, United States
Principals
Bill Pescatello
Managing Partner
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at Evolv Ventures?
Bill Pescatello, the Managing Partner, leads the investment team. He has check-writing authority and built the fund's team from Chicago with a mandate to operate independently of Kraft Heinz headquarters. The investment committee is structured to move at market speed without requiring parent-company sign-off on individual deals.
How is Evolv Ventures different from a typical corporate venture arm?
Evolv operates with permanent capital rather than a balance-sheet allocation that can be cut during earnings pressure. Unlike most corporate VCs, the firm does not require portfolio companies to have a strategic relationship with Kraft Heinz. The fund was deliberately structured in 2017 to function like an independent financial VC, with its own offices, compensation model, and investment timeline measured in decades, not quarters.
Does Evolv Ventures invest in companies that could disrupt Kraft Heinz?
Yes. Because Evolv was designed without a strategic-only mandate, it can back founders whose technologies compete with or bypass Kraft Heinz's legacy supply chains. Pescatello has publicly positioned the fund as a hedge — if the food system changes, Kraft Heinz's ownership of Evolv gives it an early look at what's coming, even from companies that never become customers or acquisition targets.
What investment stages does Evolv Ventures typically target?
Evolv focuses on early-stage companies, typically seed and Series A rounds, occasionally participating in later rounds for existing portfolio companies. The fund leads or co-leads rounds and takes board seats. Check sizes are consistent with a $100 million fund targeting first-institutional-capital positions.
Which sectors does Evolv Ventures actively invest in?
The fund's thesis covers the full food value chain: supply chain and logistics software, alternative proteins and ingredient science, direct-to-consumer food brands, food waste reduction technologies, and grocery retail technology. Portfolio companies include Afresh (AI for grocery fresh-department inventory), Grin (Latin American last-mile logistics), and Meati Foods (mycelium-based alternative protein).
How is Evolv Ventures related to Kraft Heinz?
Evolv Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of Kraft Heinz, established in 2017 with $100 million in committed capital. It is a wholly owned subsidiary but operates from separate offices in Chicago with independent investment authority. Kraft Heinz does not control day-to-day investment decisions, and the fund's performance is measured on venture-style returns, not parent-company strategic metrics.
Does Evolv Ventures co-invest alongside other VCs?
Yes. Evolv regularly co-invests with financial VCs and strategic food-and-ag investors. For example, in Meati Foods' $115 million Series B in 2023, Evolv participated alongside Revolution Growth, Grosvenor Food & AgTech, and others. The firm's corporate parentage gives it a differentiated co-investor profile — founders can access Kraft Heinz's expertise without forfeiting commercial independence.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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