Rabo Ventures
Rabo Ventures is the food and agriculture venture arm of Dutch cooperative bank Rabobank, backing early-stage agtech and foodtech from seed to Series B across Europe. Its water relevance runs through farm-level irrigation efficiency and circular water reuse. As of June 2026, (don't) Waste Water tracks 2 water investments and rates its water commitment Committed.
Compiled by Antoine Walter, (don't) Waste Water, from official filings and direct intelligence in Leviathan.
The take
Rabo Ventures is the in-house venture investor of Rabobank, the Dutch cooperative that has financed farmers for more than a century, and it carries that lineage into early-stage food and agriculture technology. It started life as the Rabo Food and Agri Innovation Fund and now writes initial equity cheques of EUR 1 to 4 million, from seed to Series B, mostly in Europe.
Rabo Ventures does not call itself a water fund, and that is the honest read: water shows up as a by-product of fixing farming. Its bets reach water through the back door, smarter irrigation that puts the right amount on each crop, and circular bioprocesses that turn side-streams into feed rather than effluent.
Rabo Ventures is therefore a useful name to watch for anyone who thinks the next decade of water gains will be won on the farm, where most of the world's freshwater is actually spent. (don't) Waste Water counts two water-relevant companies across two deals so far and rates its water commitment Committed, a deliberate slice of a much larger food and agri book.
Water Commitment Score
Compiled from official filings, third-party records, and direct intelligence from investors and founders, in Leviathan · recomputed monthly · as of Jun 2026.
How they invest
Portfolio · 2 water companies
Invests alongside
Highlighted = profiled on (don't) Waste Water.
Frequently asked
- What does Rabo Ventures invest in?
- Rabo Ventures backs early-stage food and agriculture technology: agtech, foodtech, precision agriculture, alternative proteins and bio-based solutions, themed around innovation, energy transition and sustainability. It writes initial equity tickets of EUR 1 to 4 million, from seed to Series B, mainly across Europe.
- Who runs Rabo Ventures?
- Rabo Ventures is led by Pieter van der Meché, Head of Rabo Ventures, who has run Rabobank's venture activities since 2022. The investment team includes executive directors Shishir Sinha and Katrien Swerts, sitting inside the broader Rabo Investments franchise based in Utrecht.
- Is Rabo Ventures a water fund?
- Rabo Ventures is not a dedicated water fund. It is Rabobank's food and agriculture venture arm, and its water exposure arrives through farming: smart irrigation that saves water and circular processes that reuse it. (don't) Waste Water tracks two water-relevant investments and rates it Committed.
- How is Rabo Ventures related to Rabobank and Rabo Investments?
- Rabo Ventures is the food and agriculture venture sleeve of Rabo Investments, the captive investment franchise of Dutch cooperative bank Rabobank. It is separate from Rabo Investments' Corporate Venturing team, which backs fintech, and from the bank's private equity and fund-investment activities.