News and Analysis on Global Agri-Tech Innovation, Investment and Regulation
The reorganisation of ag chemicals giant FMC Corporation’s venture capital arm, which will lay off its three staff members, has surprised the sector. But does it signal that new funding models are needed to support and scale game-changing innovations?
Plant breeder Inari has secured significant support from new and returning investors as it seeks to redefine the seed technology landscape.
Fermata, a Tel Aviv-based data science company specialising in computer vision agriculture solutions, has closed $10 million in a Series A funding.
An institutional platform focused on regenerative agriculture investments in Chile and the broader Latin American region has been launched by London-based global investment firm Astarte Capital Partners and Toesca Asset Management, an alternative...
Funding
AI-powered peptide discovery company Nuritas has successfully closed an oversubscribed $42 million Series C funding round.
VC investment
Brazil-based venture capital firm SP Ventures has reached the first closing mark of its third fund, called AGVIII, securing an initial $22 million in commitments towards a total target of $80 million.
US company Growers Edge has announced the purchase of AQUAOSO Technologies as it looks to modernise the types of financial products available for agricultural retailers, manufacturers, and lenders.
The most recent agtech failure highlights the challenges faced by carbon removal start-ups in scaling their operations and securing consistent revenue streams in a market with evolving regulations and uncertain demand.
Lockyer Valley Foods is aiming to raise $50 million in series A funding to build a fruit and vegetable processing facility in Queensland.
The Danish start-up has raised more than €2.5 million to accelerate development of autonomous agricultural safety software.
Soil data measurement and mapping company EarthOptics has announced the successful completion of $24 million in financing.
Tie-up aim aims to create market-leading platform for crop nutrition in US
Almanac says it is poised to ‘supercharge’ its offerings after acquiring the assets of the defunct agricultural insights platform Gro Intelligence.
Tensions remain between traditional venture capital expectations and the supposed longer development cycles required in agriculture. Experts weigh in.
A $1 billion scheme aims to give hundreds of millions of farmers across Asia, Latin America and Africa greater access to weather data to help them manage the effects of climate change.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is partnering with EIT Food, the world’s largest food innovation community, to launch a new accelerator bub for start-ups in the EU.
Investor profile
There is still too much belief among investors that the people who build a company are a done deal, says Annick Verween, head of the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology's Biotope Incubator. That's not the only attitude she's keen to change, she tells us.
The Danish company has secured €3.5 million in seed funding to develop a sustainable and decentralised method for producing ammonia.
Pitchbook’s new Q3 2024 agtech report reveals investor confidence is returning. Venture capital funding is on the rise. But deal counts continue to decline and exit opportunities remain limited.
Private equity firm and renewable energy investor Capital Dynamics has raised €185 million to finance two of Italy's largest agrivoltaics projects in Sicily.
Agtech companies should consider alternative funding models that align better with the agricultural industry's needs and timelines, says Agtonomy’s CEO Tim Bucher in the wake of its Series A round.
The company that provides digital solutions to help farmers and agribusinesses optimise their operations has raised €36 million in a Series C funding round.
The Business Investment Financing Track (BIFT), a new window within the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP), aims to bolster inclusive, climate-smart, and nutritious food systems in the poorest and most vulnerable countries.
Eion, a carbon removal company that uses enhanced rock weathering to remove atmospheric CO2 permanently and verifiably, has announced a contract to deliver 8,000 tonnes of permanent CO2 removal to Microsoft.
Agtech investor profile
Investing at the dawn of Brazil’s agrifintech revolution has served as the basis of its success, says The Yield Lab Latam’s managing partner Kieran Gartlan.
Pairwise, the US technology company using gene editing to improve plant breeding in specialty and commodity crops, has closed a $40M Series C funding.
SOLASTA Bio, based in Glasgow in the UK and with a base in North Carolina in the US, has completed a $14 million Series A funding round to accelerate the development of its peptide-based bioinsecticides.
Brussels-based Soil Capital said it aims to strengthen, secure, and make agricultural supply chains more sustainable, addressing a ‘triple need’: social, environmental, and economic.
Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, is inviting start-ups and small to medium-sized enterprises with innovative agtech solutions to apply for the India Australia Rapid Innovation Start-up Expansion (RISE) Accelerator.
Public-private joint venture AgriZeroNZ is investing a further NZD $4 million in Ruminant BioTech, to accelerate the commercialisation of a methane-inhibiting bolus specifically suited to New Zealand’s pastoral farming system.
PheroSyn, a spin-out from Rothamsted Research in the UK, has secured new funding to advance its pheromones-based pest management solutions.
The pair have announced a new joint venture to accelerate the Gradable platform, designed to allow farmers to derive value from grain produced using sustainable and regenerative practices.
Singapore-based DiMuto, which uses blockchain, AI, and IoT technologies to digitise and optimise the global agrifood supply chain, has announced it has successfully closed its Series A funding round, securing a total of US$5.9 million.
The digital ag specialists aim to combine their AI-powered platforms to unlock new opportunities for sustainable food systems. The long-term goal is to take the lead in addressing farming sustainability for tropical crops, AgTechNavigator understands.
Micropep Technologies, which creates natural crop protection and stimulation products using micropeptides, has announced a $29 million Series B funding round and unveiled a proprietary discovery platform called Krisalix.
Merck Animal Health, known as MSD Animal Health outside North America, has completed its acquisition of Elanco's aqua business, a deal it claims will bolster its leadership within that sector.
Agrobiomics, a Danish agtech company developing sustainable biological solutions for agriculture, has raised €4 million from NOON Ventures to bring an abiotic stress protectant, called Fortify, to the market – making plants climate resilient.
Plenty is forming a joint venture with Mawarid, a subsidiary of Alpha Dhabi Holding, in a US$680 million deal to develop a network of indoor farms across Gulf Cooperation Council member countries over the next five years.
Mitti Labs, which aims to reduce methane emissions in rice farming, has just secured $3 million in equity investment thanks to its prospects of being able to meet rising demand for verified carbon credits.
The crop protection giant has revealed a partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks, a US biotechnology company that specialises in using genetic engineering and synthetic biology to create custom microorganisms for a wide range of industries.
As water scarcity intensifies and environmental pressures mount, smart water management is becoming essential for ensuring the sustainability and productivity of agriculture. Leveraging data, technology, and best practices can help farmers grow more with...
A panel of venture capitalists at the recent World Agri-Tech South America Summit in São Paulo were bullish on the prospects for agtech funding in the region.
It’s a question we put to Sao Paulo, Brazil-based Aqua Capital, a private equity firm investing in sustainable and innovative companies within the ag and food sectors, which has announced the final closing of its Ag & Food PE Fund III (Fund III).
In a groundbreaking move, Syngenta Group has announced that it is expanding access to its genome-editing and breeding technologies to academic researchers globally.
Portfolio Profiles
AgTechNavigator caught up with SparkLabs Cultiv8, an Australian-based accelerator programme that supports early-stage agri-food tech and cleantech startups from ideation to commercialisation.
Iyris (formerly RedSea), which helps growers in the most difficult farming environments around the world to increase crop yields, reduce input costs and risk, and extend growing seasons, has completed a $16 million Series A fundraise. Now, the hard work...
Hexafarms, a start-up which develops software for indoor commercial food production, has announced the successful close of a €1.3 million pre-Seed funding round led by leading European early-stage investors Speedinvest with participation from Mudcake and...
Early-stage ag and food tech investor Big Idea Ventures has launched its fifth portfolio company through its Generation Food Rural Partners (GFRP) fund.
AgTechNavigator catches up with PowerPollen, whose technology allows pollen to be collected, preserved, and applied on-demand, for significantly better pollination and higher yields for wind-pollinated crops.
Switzerland’s xFarm Technologies hopes to establish itself as a European agtech leader after integrating new technology into its digital platform to provide more solutions to help growers become more efficient and sustainable.