KEEPING IT CLEAN.

• Author: Ranii, David
• Position: NC TREND: Tracking tech

RESTAURANTS EAT UP SOFTWARE DESIGNED TO SPOT PROBLEMS IN THE FOOD-SUPPLY CHAIN, BOLSTERING AN N.C. STARTUP.

Tracking food safety and quality throughout the field-to-fork supply chain has become a robust $12 billion annual business. One of the more promising operators is Durham-based FoodLogiQ, which provides "food traceability" technology to a growing roster of customers. Among the users are restaurants such as Buffalo Wild Wings and Chipotle Mexican Grill; chicken producer Tyson Foods Inc.; grocers such as Whole Foods Market Inc.; and hundreds of produce growers and distributors.

Some company contracts are in the "high six figures," according to interim CEO Jamie Duke, though he wouldn't share specific revenue details. "We are happy with the growth we have had, and we are ecstatic about the potential."

Others are noticing. Forbes magazine included FoodLogiQ on its list of 25 Most Innovative Ag-Tech Startups for two years running, citing its software that lets clients track food through production, processing and distribution. In March, FoodLogiQ announced that its first round of outside capital, which it started raising in 2017, totaled $19.5 million. Investors include the venture arm of Tyson Foods; German measurement-instrument-maker Testo AG; and investment firms in California and Canada. Its staff of 45, including 35 at its Durham headquarters, has nearly doubled over the last 12 months.

Now the company is kicking off a pilot program aimed at ascertaining how blockchain, the red-hot technology behind bitcoin, can help it better serve its customers. Duke says the pilot, unveiled in June in conjunction with partners including the purchasing cooperative that serves 30,000 Subway franchise restaurants, has raised FoodLogiQ's profile with existing and potential customers.

Duke is a former chief operating officer at Morrisville-based software developer SciQuest, which was renamed Jaggaer after being acquired for about $500 million in 2016 by Menlo Park, Calif.-based private-equity firm Accel-KKR. He was a FoodLogiQ consultant and board member prior to being named interim CEO in August. His predecessor, Dean Wiltse, departed after three years in the post because of "pressing personal matters," Duke says, declining further explanation.

The company doesn't have a "hard-fast deadline" to hire a permanent CEO, says Geordan Hankinson, principal at Vancouver, B.C.-based Renewal Funds, a lead investor. The search team seeks a CEO "who has the...