# Astanor Ventures
Astanor Ventures is a Brussels, Belgium-based venture capital firm that invests in agrifood technology and the broader bioeconomy, describing itself as an impact investor and reporting around €800 million under management as of its September 2023 fund close.[1](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html) • [2](https://astanor.com/) The firm manages two complementary strategies, Astanor Venture for early-stage companies and Astanor Growth for Series A and B rounds, and had invested in more than 45 agrifood companies worldwide by the time its second fund closed.[2](https://astanor.com/) • [3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million)
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Brussels, Belgium[1](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html) |
| Sector | Agrifood tech and bioeconomy impact venture capital[1](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html) |
| First fund | $325 million, launched 2020[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million) |
| Second fund | €360 million (about $384 million), closed September 2023[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million) |
| Total assets under management | Circa €800 million across funds and special purpose vehicles[1](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html) |
| Portfolio | More than 45 agrifood companies, including Monarch Tractor, v2 Food, inFarm, and Apeel Sciences[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million) |
| Co-founders | Eric Archambeau and George Coelho[1](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html) |
| Status | Active; latest investments recorded in 2026 (aggregator data, unverified)[4](https://www.cbinsights.com/investor/astanor-ventures) |
## History and people
The firm is led by co-founders and partners Eric Archambeau and George Coelho, joined by partners Christina Ulardic and Hendrik Van Asbroeck; Leslie Kapin serves as Director of Impact.[1](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html) Archambeau's earlier career includes Quadia, Wellington Partners, Benchmark, Trading Dynamics, and RightPoint Software, according to [CB Insights](https://www.edgepedia.org/cb-insights).[4](https://www.cbinsights.com/investor/astanor-ventures)
The firm's first fund, a $325 million vehicle for food and agriculture startups, launched in 2020.[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million)
## Investment strategy
Astanor invests across two strategies it describes on its own website. The venture strategy targets pre-seed and seed companies with tickets of about €1 million in Europe and the United States, while the growth strategy targets Series A and B companies with tickets of €5–10 million in Europe and North America.[5](https://astanor.com/venture/)
The firm also operates a small seed-stage program, which it describes as a program rather than a fund, for early bets such as synthetic biology. Co-founder Eric Archambeau explained the rationale: "we need to make a few bets early on just to keep track of what's going on."[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million)
**Bioeconomy in practice** means the portfolio covers farm equipment automation, alternative protein, controlled environment agriculture, and shelf-life preservation; named holdings include Monarch Tractor, v2 Food, inFarm, and Apeel Sciences.[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million) The firm's own site adds Source Ag, Plantible, and Micro Harvest to its current venture portfolio.[5](https://astanor.com/venture/)
## Funds (by the numbers)
- **Fund I**: $325 million, launched in 2020 for food and ag startups.[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million)
- **Fund II**: €360 million (about $384 million), closed in September 2023; the firm said "most of" its first-fund investors returned, though the limited partners were not individually named in press coverage.[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million)
- **Total**: the second close brought assets under management across funds and special purpose vehicles to circa €800 million (reported as circa £688.8 million by Maddyness).[1](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html) • [6](https://www.maddyness.com/uk/2023/09/19/feeding-the-future-astanor-raises-309-9m-in-a-record-breaking-fund/)
The second fund's size is reported consistently as €360 million in independent trade press; the aggregator CB Insights gives a slightly different dollar figure of $386.5 million for a 19 September 2023 close, an unverified rounding difference rather than a substantive disagreement.[4](https://www.cbinsights.com/investor/astanor-ventures)
## Portfolio and exits
By the September 2023 close Astanor had invested in more than 45 agrifood companies globally.[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million) Archambeau was candid about the alternative-protein downturn, telling AgFunderNews of the firm's plant-based investments: "With some of them, we were also disappointed by the promises versus the results, but some of them are actually pretty good."[3](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million)
Confirmed exit data is thin. CB Insights records an asset sale of portfolio company Monarch Tractor to [Caterpillar](https://www.edgepedia.org/caterpillar) dated 10 April 2026; the transaction comes from an aggregator page and is not independently verified.[4](https://www.cbinsights.com/investor/astanor-ventures)
## References
1. [Astanor Ventures Closes Second Venture Fund, at €360M — FinSMEs](https://www.finsmes.com/2023/09/astanor-ventures-closes-second-venture-fund-at-e360m.html)
2. [Astanor Home — Astanor](https://astanor.com/)
3. [Astanor Ventures closes second agrifood fund at $384 million — AgFunderNews](https://agfundernews.com/impact-investor-astanor-ventures-closes-second-agrifood-fund-at-384-million)
4. [Astanor Portfolio Investments, Astanor Funds, Astanor Exits — CB Insights](https://www.cbinsights.com/investor/astanor-ventures)
5. [Venture — Astanor](https://astanor.com/venture/)
6. [Feeding the Future: Astanor raises £309.9M in a record breaking fund — Maddyness](https://www.maddyness.com/uk/2023/09/19/feeding-the-future-astanor-raises-309-9m-in-a-record-breaking-fund/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Economics and business › Finance › Venture capital and private equity › Venture capital firms of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa › Venture capital firms of Western Europe › Venture capital firms of France and the Benelux*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license