Best Food Tech Companies in China
The 194 best Food Tech companies in China in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: Ele.me.
China's Food Tech sector is moving fast, and this directory ranks the best companies operating in it by disclosed equity funding and recent funding momentum. We're tracking 194 companies with $6.3B in total disclosed capital, a number that tells you exactly how seriously institutional money has gotten behind the space.
Ele.me anchors the top of the list at $2.8B raised, with Beijing Freebee Electronic Commerce close behind at $1.5B. But the more interesting signal is below those giants. Shenzhen Pudu Technology has pulled in $279M building restaurant robotics, and Pudu Robotics sits at $192M. That's a lot of capital chasing automation in a single niche. The global Food Tech market was valued at roughly $105.3B in 2024 and is forecast to reach $224.3B by 2032 at a 9.9% CAGR, driven by population growth and the push toward sustainable agriculture. Median app install growth is running at about +20% YoY across 501 food and food tech apps, which means consumer adoption is genuinely keeping pace with the funding. And consolidation is picking up globally too: Compass Group's move on SmartQ signals that large strategics are now actively buying what founders built. So where does China fit? Right at the center of it.
- Love for personal care brands peaks in the mornings ; food tech/delive
Our analysis of 100 Food Tech companies
$12.9b in tracked funding; 88% of the stack-profiled cohort runs cloud-native; funding activity peaked in 2025.
Ranked: Best Food Tech companies in China
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Stage | Employees | Founded | Founder | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ele.me 🦄 App-based food ordering and delivery platform | $2.8B | 100 mo ago | Acquired | 10,000 | 2008 | Mark Zhang Co-Founder | — | — |
| 2 | Beijing Freebee Electronic Commerce Provider of self check-out solutions for retail stores | $1.5B | 72 mo ago | Series C | 500 | 2016 | Zhuang Chenchao Founder | — | — |
| 3 | Shenzhen Pudu Technology Provider of an indoor catering robot | $279M | 25 mo ago | Series C | 500 | 2016 | Zhang Tao Founder & CEO | 216 patents Autonomous delivery robots: motion control, localization, obstacle detection, and navigation systems. | — |
| 4 | Baidu Waimai Online food ordering and delivery platform | $250M | 109 mo ago | Acquired | 10,000 | 2011 | — | — | — |
| 5 | Pudu Robotics Provider of delivery robots for restaurants 72Funding top 17%Innovation top 22%Product top 31%Moat top 31% All 10 signals ▾Fundingtop 17% Innovationtop 22% Producttop 31% Moattop 31% Newstop 36% Techtop 39% Markettop 40% Growthtop 47% Talentbottom 49% Globalbottom 36% Funding: Raised $192M across 6 rounds · 6 rounds over 10 yrs (0.6/yr) Innovation: 6 new-product events in 24 mo · Deep-tech classification: Tech Hardware rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 72/100 | $192M | 1 mo ago | Series D | 203 | 2016 | Felix Zhang Founder & CEO | — | 1 launch |
| 6 | Delicious without waiting Local life marketing platform for restaurants, driving customer acquisition and growth | $162M | 97 mo ago | Acquired | 38 | 2013 | Lu Ruihao Co-Founder & CMO | — | — |
| 7 | Meican Online platform for ordering meals | $133M | 54 mo ago | Series E | 5 | 2011 | — | — | — |
| 8 | STARFIELD Platform offering plant-based meat products | $101M | 53 mo ago | Series B | — | 2009 | Kiki Wu Co-Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 9 | Ubox Producer of smart vending machines | $85M | 81 mo ago | Acquired | 2,127 | 2010 | — | — | — |
| 10 | DayDayCook Online discovery platform for food recipes | $70M | 11 mo ago | Public | 104 | 2012 | Norma Chu Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 11 | Shenghuo Banjing On demand delivery service from restaurants and local shops | $55M | 129 mo ago | Series C | 2,000 | 2010 | Xu Weihao Founder | — | — |
| 12 | Panda Selected Provider of managed shared kitchen facilities for food businesses | $50M | 87 mo ago | Deadpooled | — | 2016 | Haipeng Li Founder | — | — |
| 13 | Daojia Food delivery service from local restaurants | $50M | 141 mo ago | Acquired | 92 | 2010 | — | — | — |
| 14 | Keru Cloud Provider of digital solutions for food service and retail businesses | $49M | 118 mo ago | Acquired | 2,000 | 2012 | — | — | — |
| 15 | Acewill Digital solutions provider empowering clients in the cloud era | $43M | 37 mo ago | Series E | 68 | 2006 | — | 17 patents Barbecue grill design and integrated display screen user‑interface technology. | — |
| 16 | Magic Box Citybox Smart vending machines for offline retailers | $40M | 97 mo ago | Series B | — | 2016 | Shen Bowei Co-Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 17 | Douguo Social food recipe sharing platform and eCommerce platform to sell fresh groceries and condiments | $35M | 139 mo ago | Series C | — | 2011 | Yuxiang Wang CEO | — | — |
| 18 | Chunmi Electronic Technology Manufactures and supplies smart kitchen appliances | $32M | 61 mo ago | Series D | 40 | 2009 | — | — | — |
| 19 | XiaChuFang Content driven eCommerce for food items and a recipe sharing platform | $30M | 88 mo ago | Series B | 66 | 2011 | — | — | — |
| 20 | Kzhuo Online restaurant recommendation platform | $30M | 135 mo ago | Series A | — | 2012 | Xia Ba Founder | — | — |
| 21 | Line0 Food delivery via app | $30M | 137 mo ago | Deadpooled | 79 | 2012 | — | — | — |
| 22 | CellX Company develops cell-cultivated meat products 35Funding top 37%Talent top 38%Market bottom 39%Global bottom 38% All 5 signals ▾Fundingtop 37% Talenttop 38% Marketbottom 39% Globalbottom 38% Newsbottom 22% Funding: Raised $25.7M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 6 yrs (0.7/yr) Talent: 2 named leaders on record · 2 C-suite/founder profiles curated rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 35/100 | $26M | 36 mo ago | Series A | 40 | 2020 | Ran Liu Co-Founder & Board Director | — | — |
| 23 | Xixiang Online platform for ordering food | $17M | 92 mo ago | Series B | 400 | 2014 | — | 15 patents Patents concentrated in electrical & electronics | — |
| 24 | Shenzhen Kemai Technology Provider of multiple solution for retail and catering industries | $15M | 63 mo ago | Series B | 470 | 2000 | — | — | — |
| 25 | Passiontec SaaS tool for restaurants | $15M | 122 mo ago | Series A | — | 2008 | Guo Jiasu CEO | — | — |
| 26 | Aigens Provider of suite solutions for restaurants | $14M | 42 mo ago | Series A | 120 | 2012 | Peter Liu Co-Founder & CTO | — | 2 partnerships |
| 27 | Nanjing Zhouzi Future Food Technology Provider of food safety testing services | $14M | 37 mo ago | Series A | — | 2019 | Ding Shijie Co-Founder & CEO | — | 2 launchs |
| 28 | Avant Meats Developer of cell-based meat and animal protein food products | $14M | 47 mo ago | Series A | 21 | 2018 | Kai Chan Co-Founder & CEO | 67 patents Patents concentrated in chemistry & materials | — |
| 29 | Meiweishenghuo Manufactures and supplies smart vending machines | $14M | 103 mo ago | Series A | — | 2017 | Dianping Meituan Founder | — | — |
| 30 | Botinkit Provider of AI-driven digital kitchen solutions for global businesses 48Funding top 32%Growth top 35%Talent top 38%AI top 45% All 7 signals ▾Fundingtop 32% Growthtop 35% Talenttop 38% AItop 45% Techbottom 41% Globalbottom 36% Marketbottom 29% Funding: Raised $13.0M across 2 rounds · 2 rounds over 4 yrs (0.5/yr) Growth: Fresh capital in last 24 mo rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 48/100 | $13M | 2 mo ago | Series B | — | 2021 | Rui Chen Co-Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 31 | Lehe Restaurant recommendation app | $12M | 170 mo ago | Deadpooled | 91 | 2011 | — | — | — |
| 32 | Aidachu Online marketplace for at-home cooking by chefs | $10M | 131 mo ago | Series A | — | 2013 | — | — | — |
| 33 | Suwei SaaS based solution for restaurant and mobile app for customers to order food | $9M | 106 mo ago | Deadpooled | 40 | 2014 | — | 2 patents Patents concentrated in its core technology | — |
| 34 | Zrou Movement Platform offering plant-based meat products | $9M | 61 mo ago | Series A | 50 | 2020 | Liqin Lu Co-Founder | — | — |
| 35 | Xiaohengshuijiao Internet first restaurant serving various varieties of momos | $8M | 123 mo ago | Deadpooled | — | 2014 | Li Heng Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 36 | Dzb Mobile app to order food in restaurants (Self Check out) | $8M | 145 mo ago | Deadpooled | — | 2013 | Li Qi Founder | — | — |
| 37 | Renhe Hotel Intelligent Vending Machines Provider of smart vending machines for hotel businesses | $7M | 44 mo ago | Series A | — | — | — | — | — |
| 38 | Xiaomaigui Provider of intelligent retail solutions, including smart refrigerators and vending machines | $7M | 89 mo ago | Seed | — | 2017 | Dai Jiang Founder | — | — |
| 39 | iBaking Online platform offering smart ovens | $6M | 93 mo ago | Deadpooled | 60 | 2015 | — | — | — |
| 40 | Haishen Technology Developer of artificial intelligence systems for automated security baggage screening | $6M | 84 mo ago | Series A | — | 2016 | Jianbin Dai Co-Founder & CEO | 8 patents Patents concentrated in its core technology | — |
| 41 | Dongguan Hongchi Intelligent Technology Smart vending machines for offline retailers | $5M | 102 mo ago | Deadpooled | — | 2017 | Forest Tian Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 42 | YoPoint Smart vending machines for offline retailers | $4M | 94 mo ago | Series A | — | 2017 | Kane Yau Co-Founder & GM | — | — |
| 43 | Haofood Provider of plant-based protein alternative products | $4M | 50 mo ago | Seed | 20 | 2020 | Astrid Prajogo Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 44 | Star Speed Store Provider of a hotel room logistics robot | $3M | 60 mo ago | Seed | — | 2019 | Yao Jincheng Co-Founder & CEO | — | 1 job opening |
| 45 | SynchroLife Blockchain based restaurant review platform | $3M | 72 mo ago | Series A | — | 2017 | Tomochika Kamiya Founder & CEO | — | — |
| 46 | NOSH Internet first restaurant offering healthy meals | $2M | 82 mo ago | Seed | 70 | 2015 | — | — | — |
| 47 | ALLKLEAR Provider of plant based functional salads | $1M | 57 mo ago | Seed | — | 2018 | Angus Au Co-Founder | — | — |
| 48 | BistroChat Platform offering restaurant booking & loyalty application | $1M | 52 mo ago | Seed | — | 2018 | Alexandre Sonier Co-Founder & COO | — | 4 job openings |
| 49 | 70 30 Food Tech Provider of plant and mycelium-based ready meals for a healthy and sustainable diet | $700K | 27 mo ago | Seed | — | 2022 | Mike Huang Co-Founder | — | — |
| 50 | Leg Boss Provider of plant-based alternatives to seafood | $558K | 34 mo ago | Seed | — | — | — | — | — |
Top 12 Food Tech companies in China
#1
Series D · Shenzhen, Guangdong Province · founded 2016 · 203 employees$192.5Mraised▾
Provider of delivery robots for restaurants. The company developed different products including the chatbot, universal delivery robot, and delivery robot. The companys products are applied in different industries, including restaurants, coffee shops, hospitals, schools, office buildings, shopping malls, hotels, and factories.
- Apr 2026Series D$150M
- May 2023Series C—
- Feb 2023Series C$15M
- Sep 2021Series C$77M
#2
Series B · Shenzhen, Guangdong Province · founded 2021$13Mraised▾
Provider of AI-driven digital kitchen solutions for global businesses. Its robots are designed to automate cooking processes and offer precise digital controls for replicating recipes.
- Apr 2026Series B$50M
- Apr 2025Series B—
- Jul 2023Series A$13M
- Dec 2022Seed—
#3
Public · Hong Kong, Hong Kong · founded 2012 · 104 employees$70.5Mraised▾
Online discovery platform for food recipes. Its app allows users to experience diverse culinary delights through video tutorials, pictures, and interactive sharing features aimed at inspiring daily cooking. The platform offers mobile applications for Android and iOS platforms.
- Jul 2025Post IPO$27M
- Jul 2022Series C$500K
- Feb 2021Series C$25M
- Aug 2020Series C$20M
#4
Series C · Shenzhen, Guangdong Province · founded 2016 · 500 employees$279.5Mraised▾
Provider of an indoor catering robot. It provides delivery robots include intelligent delivery capabilities with safety performance and loading efficiency. It provides robots can fulfill delivery tasks by placing food on the tray and starting delivery on the table number. Company are equipped with obstacle identification and response mechanisms, improving stability even during emergencies. Company robots can handle multiple delivery tasks and provide status updates via a watch. It offer customized voice announcements for promotions at restaurants, enhancing the overall delivery experience.
- May 2024Series C$69.5M
- May 2023Series C—
- Feb 2023Series C$14.6M
- Sep 2021Series C$78M
#5
Ele.me 🦄Acquired · Shanghai, Shanghai · founded 2008 · 10000 employees$2.8Braised▾
Ele.me is an app-based food ordering and delivery platform. The users can discover foods from nearby restaurants and delivers them through their own logistic team. It also allows customers to track their food orders in real-time. Provides a mobile application available for both Andriod and iOS users.
- Feb 2018Series G$200M
- May 2017Series G$15.9M
- Apr 2016Series G$1.2B
- Nov 2015Series F—
#6
Series C · Chaoyang, Beijing · founded 2016 · 500 employees$1.5Braised▾
Provider of self check-out solutions for retail stores
- May 2020Series C$14M
- Jan 2018Seed—
- Feb 2017Angel$300M
#7
Series E · Beijing, Beijing · founded 2011 · 5 employees$132.9Mraised▾
Meican is an online platform for ordering meals. It provides location-based restaurant listing service along with menus, pricing, and more. It generates revenue by taking a cut of the bill from the restaurants that people order from. The company is focused on catering to corporate customers.
- Dec 2021Series E—
- Nov 2021Series E$100M
- Aug 2019Series D—
- May 2018Series D—
#8
Series E · Beijing, Beijing · founded 2006 · 68 employees$43.3Mraised▾
Digital solutions provider empowering clients in the cloud era. The company offers comprehensive digital solutions designed to enhance business operations and drive success. Specializing in providing cloud-based solutions, the company caters to diverse business needs with offerings such as store operation management, supply chain and human resource management, big data and business intelligence, private middle platform products, value-added application product lines, and value-added operation business lines. The company delivers a suite of software and SaaS products, including digital management platforms, mobile solutions, and intelligent operation platforms. The company focuses on enabling businesses to reduce costs, increase efficiency, and improve profitability through digital transformation. The company's solutions support various operational aspects, including supply chain optimization, human resource management, and data-driven decision-making. The company aims to be a continuous leader in digital solutions for the cloud era.
- May 2023Series E—
- Jun 2021Series D—
- Aug 2020Series D—
- 2017Series C$36.9M
#9
Series A · Minhang, Shanghai · founded 2020 · 40 employees$25.7Mraised▾
Company develops cell-cultivated meat products. The company has created lab-grown meat kebabs and tofu with minced lab-grown meat. The company also developed cell-cultivated beef products using 3D bioprinting technology.
- Jun 2023Series A$6.5M
- Feb 2022Series A$14.8M
- Sep 2021Series A$4.3M
- Dec 2020Seed$50K
#10
Series B · Shenzhen, Guangdong Province · founded 2009$101.4Mraised▾
Platform offering plant-based meat products. The company specializes in developing plant-based meat products using plant protein, providing consumers with healthy meat alternatives. The company extracts meat molecules from plants, using molecular sensory to interact between flavor substances, and claims not using antibiotics, flavors, and other chemicals.
- Jan 2022Series B$100M
- Aug 2020Series A—
- Mar 2020Seed$1.4M
#11
Acquired · Beijing, Beijing · founded 2011 · 10000 employees$250Mraised▾
Online food ordering and delivery platform. The platform allows usesr to discover restaurants and order food from deifferent restaurants.
- Apr 2017Series D—
- Jul 2016Series D—
- Jul 2015Series D$250M
#12
Acquired · Shanghai, Shanghai · founded 2013 · 38 employees$162Mraised▾
Local life marketing platform for restaurants, driving customer acquisition and growth. This platform specializes in providing comprehensive new media marketing services to empower restaurants with digital operations. It helps businesses achieve all-channel exposure, acquire customers efficiently, and build lasting relationships with consumers to boost offline traffic. Services include live streaming, traffic matrix strategies, short video production and promotion, and influencer marketing. The platform establishes a complete lead generation path with effect monitoring for sustainable growth. It connects with major traffic platforms, enhances conversion capabilities, and offers detailed data reports for user management. Content creation, influencer outreach, private domain marketing, live streaming, and in-store traffic guidance are all part of the service. It also provides marketing effect monitoring, coupon transactions, in-store verification, and activity collaboration to engage and incentivize users. The platform offers tailored marketing solutions, online real-time management, and expert consulting to drive business success. It provides app, mini program access for online prod
- May 2018Series D$63M
- Jan 2017Series C—
- Oct 2015Series C$79M
- Nov 2014Series B$20M
Funding & investor landscape
Notable founders
How research on Food Technology is moving in China
A read on the academic research around Food Technology — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 3,976 China-affiliated papers.
- Jiangnan University167
- China Agricultural University142
- State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology136
- Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences125
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs125
- Food safety3→110
- Detection limit1→59
- Food packaging1→26
- Food spoilage1→24
- Food science1→21
- Food safety8→343
- Food processing3→228
- Shelf life2→153
- Food science7→132
- Food industry2→123
- Food safety15→310
- Food processing9→156
- Food security12→147
- Agriculture13→136
- Production (economics)5→89
Where food tech is researched across China
Location clusters by institution affiliation — each city's volume, stance tone, and a quick read on its hot topic, what's advancing, the opening opportunity, and the main concern.
Who's filing food tech patents in China
China food tech patent filing is accelerating — 143 filings from 224 assignees (2016–2025), led by Guangdong Midea Consumer Electri, Qiulei HU, Whirlpool; annual filings 8→14.
- Guangdong Midea Consumer Electri13
- Qiulei HU12
- Whirlpool10
- Midea Group10
- SO KWOK KUEN8
- Gushwa David J7
- Kingclean Electric Green TECH Su6
- Hefei Midea Refrigerator6
Common questions
Rohit lives in the feed. He covers what's moving right now — the funding rounds, launches and shifts breaking across the trade press — and ties them back to where the sector is heading.