SANTA CLARA, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 6, 2021 / Hwy Haul, a produce supply chain logistics company started by former Walmart executives, has raised a $10 million Series A round to further its mission to transform the way fresh produce is shipped and delivered.
Eileses Capital led the round with BluePointe Ventures as the co-lead. Additional investors include AgFunder, True Blue Partners, and notable angel investors like Dheeraj Pandey, founder, and ex-CEO of Nutanix (NASDAQ:NTNX), Girish Mathrubootham, founder CEO of Freshworks, Rajiv Batra, founder of Palo Alto Networks (NYSE:PANW), Vivek Mehra, Partner Emeritus at August Capital, among others.
Hwy Haul’s end-to-end, next-generation digital freight platform for fresh produce cuts out the middleman, directly linking farmers, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers to its expansive network that includes thousands of pre-vetted carriers. Their goal is to ensure produce is delivered efficiently, eliminating wastage, reducing freight’s carbon footprint and creating sustainable future growth for all stakeholders.
Syed Aman, CEO, and co-founder says, “produce spends half its life in the supply chain, and more than $15 billion is wasted or rejected in transit every year. Existing produce shipping methods are largely manual, with poor visibility and communication within the supply chain. These inefficiencies lead to a further problem of empty miles and their associated carbon emissions.”
Using the platform, shippers can find instant quotes and book loads in just a few clicks. Enhanced visibility allows for easier load tracking, including real-time humidity and temperature monitoring as they move across the country. Hwy Haul’s actionable data insights help optimize supply chains, reduce wait times, lower detention costs and more.
Carriers can save time by eliminating daily phone calls and instead receive notifications on the easy-to-use app, and maximize income using algorithms that offer the best rates in a lane. The app is highly customizable, allowing carriers to choose their preferred lanes, load types, and expected earnings per mile, eliminating paperwork and empty miles once and for all.
“The produce freight brokerage industry has been operating in traditional ways for decades,” said Kishore Bopardikar, Founder and Partner at Eileses Capital. “We are excited to lead this investment round for Hwy Haul and support their mission to digitize every step in the value chain and create a seamless experience for the food and fresh produce fraternity.”
“Inefficiency in the fresh produce supply chain comes at a high cost, not only economically, but in terms of food waste and sustainability,” said Tom Shields, Partner at AgFunder. “We are excited to support Hwy Haul in their journey to dramatically improve this key part of our food system.”
About Hwy Haul
Founded in 2018, Hwy Haul combines cutting-edge technology like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and optimization algorithms to connect loads of fresh produce with carriers across North America, and its customers include an expanding roster of growers, distributors, and retailers, among them Fortune 500 companies. Learn more at: https://www.hwyhaul.com.
Before founding Hwy Haul, Syed Aman, CEO, served as the Director of Supply Chain at Walmart, where he was instrumental in laying the foundation of Walmart’s online grocery platform. He hails from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT), one of the world’s top unicorn-makers. Sharan Grewal, CTO, held various engineering leadership roles at WalmartLabs. Zahed Khan, COO, had a 30-year career in produce and logistics, where he built and exited multiple produce and trucking businesses.
