Rabobank and Future Food Fund (FFF) have invested €1 million in health-tech startup Clear, alongside several angel investors. 

Clear, which was founded in 2019 by Piet Hein van Dam and Madelon Bracke, has developed a self-help tool for type 2 diabetes patients in collaboration with Dutch insurance company Zilveren Kruis, and a number of healthcare providers in Rotterdam.  

More than half of the patients who took part in the personalised smart app programme, which allows users to analyse their body’s response to food, reported “a significant improvement of their health”, within two weeks, the company said in a press release.  

“We look forward to working with Clear to help people improve their health through food,” said Jaap Strengers, investment director of Future Food Fund, a Dutch specialist venture capital fund that invests in early-stage companies that can change the value chain of food and agriculture.  “We are confident that the Clear team can make a significant contribution to building a more sustainable and healthier food system.” 

Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases in the Netherlands. One in three Dutch adults aged 45 or older is expected to develop type 2 diabetes in the future, according to the Dutch Diabetic Fund. It is estimated close to 1.5 million Dutch people may have diabetes by 2040. 

“Diabetes 2 is a condition that is often caused by lifestyle,” said Clear founder and chief executive officer Piet Hein van Dam. “What is more logical to investigate if you can also revert it with your lifestyle?” 

Source: Impact Investor
Author: Danielle Rossingh