Kernel Capital invests €900k in Clare food diagnostic company AltraTech
The Co Clare company — formed only six months ago by serial entrepreneur, Tim Cummins — has been developing a single-use portable semiconductor test kit for use in the food and agri-sectors. End users can, basically, use the product to identify food content and containments, with the kit being animal species-specific.
“With the horsemeat scandal of 2013 showing that major gaps still exist in ensuring that the food we consume is safe and authentic, there is an ever-increasing focus on food traceability,” Kernel Capital said.
“AltraTech aims to be first to market with an on-site disposable DNA diagnostics kit, which will reduce the wait time for DNA testing to 30 minutes, from today’s two-to-five days, and reducing the cost significantly,” it added.
The Shannon firm will use the funding to develop and trial its technology and plans to significantly add to its workforce, over the coming 12 months, to support its plans.
Of the 900,000 being invested, €650,000 is coming from Kernel, with the remainder from Enterprise Ireland and company promoters.
The announcement marks the second made from Kernel in as many weeks. Last week, the investment firm announced that technology business, Tapastreet — a beneficiary of the early-stage equity fund jointly managed by Kernel and Bank of Ireland — has entered an agreement with the UK Met Office to collaborate on an innovative project that will include social media signals with automated weather monitoring.
The company took part in Enterprise Ireland’s ‘ones to watch’ showcase in the Irish Embassy in London, last week.
