We build new companies that accelerate a circular and regenerative food system

The goal of the pre-studio program is to work towards a validated solution to a problem you identify during the program―a solution that you then potentially enter the Fresh Studio with and further develop it with your team. To reach this goal, Fresh connects you with an ecosystem of experts and stakeholders who can accelerate your journey, helps match you with potentially life-long teammates and co-founders, and helps further your understanding of the challenges within the food system and the more promising pathways for transforming it.

1. The program will provide you with the opportunity to found a mission-driven venture by matching with complementary entrepreneurs in the cohort
2. We will also help you identify, test, and refine solutions that can have a deep, structural impact on the food system
3. You get the chance to work on your ideas with day-to-day feedback, and access to an extensive network of potential users, subject matter experts, and mentors to co-design, test, and validate your ideas with

The program is primarily a 11-week, in-person program.
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There is also two weeks of a light digital, pre-program. These moments happen online and give participants a chance to emerge in our knowledge library, get to know others in the cohort, and prepare for the intensive program.

When we meet together in Rotterdam, we will move into ‘problem loving’, during which we will dig into the food system to understand where the big opportunity areas are. From there, we will ideate and test solutions. The final period will focus on prototyping one solution direction and getting feedback from relevant stakeholders. Key to this journey will be the focus on forming a strong founding team, and working towards an investable business idea.

No. When you are accepted, you commit to the entire program.

Our commitment is to help people found a high-impact venture that transforms the food system. To enable this, we will work closely with you over the duration of the program―benefiting from our expertise in systems thinking and the food system as well as venture development and teaming, like finding your co-founder. We will also engage a core set of mentors and subject matter experts from our ecosystem who will support you with their expertise - whether insight from the food system, or with practical expertise in venture development. We will also connect you to relevant stakeholders -- such as end beneficiaries (i.e. food manufacturers, farmers etc.) who will be critical in the validation of your venture solution.

No, you do not need a team to apply for the Fresh program. In fact, one of the purposes of the Fresh program is to support individuals find and build a team as they identify a problem they’re committed to solving.

Yes, you can apply with an existing team. However, Fresh is not an accelerator program; we work with participants to truly understand the challenges in the food system and develop innovative solutions that can address critical barriers. Each team member will need to apply separately, you should come with an open mind, and you should be okay with the theoretical possibility that a new person joins your team.

That’s okay too. There are many examples of entrepreneurs going at it alone in the beginning, and matches are not always easy to find. However, when it comes to selecting which ventures enter the studio, a well balanced team in sync with each other will be one of the criteria we’ll take into consideration.

No. Some participants may come into Fresh with an existing idea, others will be exploring multiple areas. While having an existing idea can be valuable pre-thinking, the Fresh program emphasizes taking a step back to fully understand a problem before scoping a solution.

It depends on the stage of your idea. Experimenting with different directions is a plus, implying that you are already learning a lot about possible problem and solution spaces. But if your idea is already a business, then it's probably not a great fit. Fresh is a pre-idea program and not an accelerator program. We start with deeply and further understanding the problems inherent in the food system. We ask every participant to take a step back from any ideas or preconceptions to take a fresh, critical look at their assumptions and idea development.

Yes and no. If it’s a grant or a small investment amount in a general direction, then yes. But if it’s a serious seed investment, to us that implies that you’re already quite path-committed to an existing plan and deviating from that path would be problematic for you or your stakeholders. We want to ensure that participants have maximum flexibility when it comes to understanding the problems and designing solutions that can structurally address them.

Yes, generally speaking. There are no IP agreements and you are entitled to work on any ideas that come to you during or after the program. However, Fresh does not sign NDAs with participants entering our program or entrepreneurs more broadly. You can protect your idea through standard legal means, but otherwise it becomes part of a toolkit of potential solutions for others, including participants in future cohorts, to solve problems. 

We aim to build ventures that address a systemic challenge by addressing key barriers or build critical capacity. For the first few years, Fresh will focus on farmer-centric solutions that accelerate the transition of the cultivation side of the food chain: regenerative agri- and aquaculture farming systems. For a more elaborate answer, and a list of good examples of ventures, please read our blog under 'stories'.

Fresh is looking for a diverse mix of people. Business-minded individuals, domain experts, and technical people of different stripes are all needed to create well balanced teams. Often what we see is that people from very different fields are capable of approaching these challenges in unique and innovative ways.

Yes! Not only will you have the opportunity to pair yourself with someone who is stronger on the business side of things, but the Fresh program and Studio are designed to develop and compliment your skills in that area. We also have a broad network of experienced entrepreneurs who can guide you during the program.

We require all participants to locate to (or close to) Rotterdam for the physical part of the Program, so expect to move to the Netherlands for the duration of the program to get set-up! Building relationships with other potential co-founders and teammates ultimately requires proximity. Relationships are built over dinners, drinks, and struggling through a challenging process together, not over video chat.

Currently, the Fresh program is available only to those with EU citizenship, residence, or a visa that enables them to participate. We are working to make it possible for international applicants from outside the EU and without existing working permissions to join the Fresh program in the future, but for now it’s unfortunately not possible.

No, the program is delivered free-of-cost to participants. We view it as an essential investment in capacity building and early progress.

Yes, Fresh offers a small monthly stipend per participant to cover some of the basic living expenses.

You will have to find housing yourself. However, we support everyone with helpful resources, tips and tricks, and the ability to coordinate with other participants.

No, the program is a full-time commitment and must have participants’ full attention.

No, the Fresh program requires full-time commitment. If you're looking for a more orientating program that you can do while fulfilling an existing job, please check our courses.

In general, we do not allow accepted applicants to defer their participation. A lot can happen in a year, and our focus areas for future programs may shift. However, we will work with accepted applicants to defer their participation for cases due to extenuating circumstances.

Applications for the Fresh program are accepted on a rolling basis, with last applications accepted in early April.

At the end of the program, venture teams will have the opportunity to join the Fresh Studio to co-found and build their venture with us. That decision needs to be a mutual choice; should either the venture team or Fresh not see an ideal fit, the venture team is free to continue building the venture on their own.

Fresh has a network of core investors that have earmarked seed capital for ventures entering the studio. However, obtaining investment depends partially on the stage the venture is in. In some cases, ventures start off with grants, subsidies, and early pilots before seeking investment from our core investors.

Find more detailed information on how we structure and finance ventures when they join in this blog: How we revolutionize ownership and why it helps us transform the food system

Yes, when you transfer to the studio we co-found the venture alongside you. Program support, fundraising, network development, recruitment, opportunity due diligence, and our hands-on support is part of our investment. However, Fresh is adopting a Steward Ownership model which has a big impact on how shares are dealt with. Steward Ownership splits decision-making and profit-sharing rights and creates multiple types of stakes and shares.

You as founder or founding team will receive 100% of the exclusive decision-making shares, meaning you have the hands on the steering wheel. Founders also receive economic shares for the hard work, the risk you take, and investment you are making at an early stage.

We calculate our investment as a co-founder based on the investment delivered trough the program and time spend in the Studio. This investment is put into a EPOS (similar to a SAFE), enabling your new venture to post-pone valuation and make fundraising easer. This EPOS is converted into shares after a first round of investment or when the company has established full cashflow positivity by natural growth. Upon conversion fresh receives non-voting shares with a predefined capped return on our investment. We have set our multiple at 4.3X over our investment, when we have received this 'capped return', the shares are dissolved.

The Studio is an institutionalized co-founder that supports the venture on a day-to-day basis in the first 2-3 years of its development. The studio takes a hands-on approach and works alongside the entrepreneurial team to organize capital, connect to expertise, build a team, and helps with a lot of the nitty gritty like legal, accounting, design, and finding early customers. The objective of the studio is to help ghe ventures it builds become fully autonomous as they find success and traction.

Our team will be reviewing all applications and will reach out to you if there's any questions or if we need additional information. When we see potential in an applicant, the next steps include a short call with one of our colleagues, potentially followed by an interview with two members of the Fresh team. Interviews will be planned with qualified applicants after the early application deadline, which is January 31st, 2023.