US-based venture capital firm Bread and Butter Ventures launched a $27m third fund on Tuesday featuring limited partners including logistics group Atco, brewery Bernick’s and carmaker Toyota.
Charitarian Foundation, Dunn Family Office, FR Bigelow Foundation, Revolution Ventures, Stella and Tonkawa also committed to the fund, as did Daren Cotter, Jill Gwaltney, Amy Langer and Chris and Crystal Sacca, while Toyota was represented by its Toyota Ventures unit.
Founded in 2017, Bread and Butter Ventures targets seed-stage entrepreneurs based in the US state of Minnesota – nicknamed the bread and butter state – as well as globally, helping its portfolio companies access local corporate network, commercial opportunities and industry mentors.
Fund III will focus on food, healthcare and enterprise software-as-a-service technology developers who intend to disrupt the so-called bread-and-butter sectors in the state, including gristmill operators and butter manufacturing plants.
The firm has also formed Bread & Butter Innovation Circle, an innovation initiative made up of 17 corporations with a presence in Minnesota, including 3M, Allianz, Bremer Bank, Ecolab, CH Robinson, CHS, General Mills, Hormel, Mayo Clinic, Schwan’s Company, Securian Financial, Stella, US Bank and Xcel Energy, which will work closely with early and growth-stage companies.
