Divert Secures Partnership With Mitsubishi to Scale Circular Infrastructure Across North America - Produce Market Guide

Divert Inc., a circular economy company on a mission to prevent food from being wasted, has formed a strategic partnership with Mitsubishi Corp., serving as the lead investor in Divert’s Series C financing. This partnership is a first-of-its-kind model for the organics resource recovery industry, reflecting the demonstrated success of Divert’s commercially and operationally proven platform and elevating the company to a valuation of over $1 billion.

The partnership comes at a time when regulatory pressure, decarbonization goals, food supply chain inefficiencies and rising disposal and energy costs are continuing to converge, the company says. As demand accelerates for infrastructure that can recover value from food that can no longer be consumed, Mitsubishi’s expertise is expected to play a key role in supporting Divert’s continued growth.

As part of the partnership, Mitsubishi has made an equity investment in Divert and, in connection with that investment, has been granted preferred offtake rights for renewable natural gas. Together, Divert and Mitsubishi are also establishing a new pathway to bring the benefits of renewable natural gas into Japan and other global markets through Mitsubishi’s global energy platform.

“This partnership reflects the maturity of Divert’s platform and the value we deliver to customers every day,” says Ryan Begin, CEO and co-founder of Divert. “We have built a proven model that solves real operating challenges for food retailers and manufacturers and creates value through food donations, renewable energy production and nutrient recovery. MC [Mitsubishi Corp.] recognized Divert as a disciplined infrastructure platform with proven results, strong operating capability and a clear path to continued scale.”

Divert says its platform sits at the intersection of food, logistics, agriculture, energy and carbon markets, positioning the company to reduce waste at its source and maximize value from the material it receives. The company’s model supports major food retailers and manufacturers in achieving compliance, reducing waste and improving operational efficiency.

Mitsubishi leverages more than 50 years of expertise across energy markets to deliver solutions that support a stable energy supply and advance the transition to a carbon-neutral society. Given Mitsubishi’s experience in developing and operating gas-related businesses in the U.S., the partnership creates a strong foundation for collaboration and synergy with Divert, the company says.

“We are focused on building businesses that strengthen resource resilience, support stable energy supply and create long term value through practical decarbonization,” says Shinya Naka, senior vice president, division chief operating officer, Europe and Next-Generation Energy Division, Energy & Power Solution Group. “Divert has built a compelling platform at the convergence of food, energy and circularity. Its proven operating model, strong customer value proposition and ability to recover value from discarded resources made this a strategic opportunity for us.”

The partnership marks an important step not only for Divert but also for the broader organics resource recovery industry. By pairing strategic equity capital with renewable natural gas offtake, Divert and Mitsubishi aim to advance a new model for financing and scaling circular food system infrastructure — one that links source reduction, domestic energy production and decarbonization in a way that has not previously been executed at scale.

Divert is a portfolio company of Ara Partners, a global private equity, infrastructure and energy firm focused on decarbonizing the industrial economy.