Business

Food tech firm Arc-net secures £2m investment from Synergy Health founder

Dr Richard Steeves (left) founder of Synergy Health plc and Kieran Kelly, CEO of Arc-net
Dr Richard Steeves (left) founder of Synergy Health plc and Kieran Kelly, CEO of Arc-net Dr Richard Steeves (left) founder of Synergy Health plc and Kieran Kelly, CEO of Arc-net

BELFAST-based food technology start-up Arc-net has secured a £2 million investment from the man behind one of the world’s largest medical outsourcing firms.

Dr Richard Steeves founded Synergy Health plc in 1991 and grew it into a global medical hygiene business before selling the company for £2 billion in 2015.

Formed in 2014 by Kieran Kelly, Arc-net develops technology that enables food producers and retailers to authenticate and track food from creation to consumption through using Blockchain technology.

Dr Steeves’ £2m investment will be used to accelerate Arc-net’s rapid growth, which in the space of just three years has seen it expand from a small start-up with just two employees, into a 20 strong team with offices in Belfast and Edinburgh.

The firm has plans to increase its workforce to 50 people, with new jobs in data analytics and sales and marketing.

Kieran Kelly said the man behind the investment is of particular significance.

"He is a visionary in the truest sense of the word, and the fact that he shares our vision for arc-net is a massive endorsement of our service, our strategy, and the potential of our company," he said.

"We see significant demand for what we have to offer and this investment will put us in a very strong position to capitalise on that," he added.

Dr Steeves said his investment is about more than just making a profit.

"I am very excited to be supporting arc-net and their objective to revolutionise food supply chain security using their novel technology," he said.

"I also find the social aspect of arc-net’s service compelling, working with the food industry to improve transparency and authenticity."

According to a recent PwC report, food fraud costs the industry more than £32 billion a year, an issue which Arc-net seeks to address.