Is venture capital failing agri-food innovation? Experts call for a rethink
At the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London, leading investors debated whether the traditional venture capital model is fit for purpose in agri-food
Funding, mergers & acquisitions
De Heus set to acquire CJ Feed & Care, accelerating Asian growth strategy
Acquisition includes 17 feed mills
World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit London 2025
Helios AI’s agentic feature is like working with ‘a team of Bloomberg analysts’
Virginia-based Helios AI is using multiple agents to help procurers purchase commodities at the right time for the right price, as volatility continues to ripple across the supply chain
ADM, Alltech unite feed assets across US and Canada
Joint venture will be majority-owned by Alltech
Nofence celebrates largest funding round of the year
Virtual fencing company Nofence has raised over £26 million following the successful close of its Series B funding round. The company says the investment will be used to accelerate its international expansion and enhance its product offering to better...
Agrifood VC funding sharply down in H1 2025, PE fares better
The agrifood funding landscape was dealt another blow in the first half of 2025, with new fund size dropping drastically from several years ago, but emerging private equity (PE) firms are finding opportunities, according to PitchBook
Hyperspectral imagery: UK start-up Messium lands £3.3m to seed growth
UK-based Messium, which uses hyperspectral satellites and AI-driven crop growth models to measure crop nitrogen from space, is eyeing expansion after securing a £3.3 million seed investment
Acclym acquisition a ‘major step’ says CropX
Crop supply intelligence company Acclym ‘speaks the corporate sustainability language’, says CropX CEO Tomer Tzach, and brings significant customers like AB InBev, Nestle, General Mills, and McCain Foods to CropX’s agronomic farm management platform
The Yield Lab hits 100-company milestone
A decade from the formation of its first fund in St. Louis, Missouri in the US, global early-stage venture capital firm The Yield Lab celebrates investing in 100+ agri-food tech companies
Animal health and nutrition industry heats up with strategic deals
Kemin and Balmoral Funds finalize animal health and nutrition transactions, while CVC Capital Partners is reportedly the leading contender for dsm-firmenich’s ANH business
Start-up profile
From cow herder to unicorn… What’s behind Halter’s hefty market value?
Virtual fencing start-up Halter became one of New Zealand’s rare unicorns when it raised $100m in June this year from a sweep of Silicon Valley tech investors at a $1bn valuation. Its president Andrew Fraser explains its allure
Are farms the next big asset class? What Proterra buying AcreTrader means for ag investing
Digitizing financial services and opening up investment opportunities in farmland can help both growers and investors
Feed monitoring company BinSentry raises $50 million Series C round to fuel expansion
BinSentry is fueling its mission of digitizing the animal feed supply chain with a fresh round of venture capital funding, as the agtech company looks to Brazil for growth
‘The benefits are clear’: Saga Robotics on why it’s the chasing the American dream
The Norwegian company behind the Thorvald autonomous robot – which zaps powdery mildew with high-intensity UV-C light – has raised £8.4m to scale operations both in the UK and US
Pairwise licenses gene-editing platform to Mars to bolster cacao R&D
Cocoa market volatility is making major food producers like Mars rethink their supply chain with the help of agtech
Private equity ‘uniquely placed’ to unlock value from biologicals boom, says Ambienta
Venture capital alone can’t scale and commercialise innovation in the biocontrol sector, says the asset manager after its acquisition of Spanish biological crop solutions platform Agronova
Cargill deepens investment in Brazil’s booming feed sector
US agribusiness giant is set to acquire 100% of the operations of a Brazilian animal nutrition company
Soil health analytics start-up TerraBlaster closes oversubscribed $4m pre-seed round
TerraBlaster digs into soil health metrics with laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy
Ambienta’s Agronova deal bears out biosolutions boom as climate pressures threaten Europe’s crop yields
One of Europe’s largest asset managers entirely focused on environmental sustainability has entered the sustainable agriculture sector with acquisition of Spanish biological crop solutions platform Agronova
British biofertiliser start-up NZN eyes Asia after raising $6.6mn
UK-based NetZeroNitrogen hopes to launch a bioinoculant for rice farming next year after a $6.6 million seed round
Ag fintech company Growers Edge continues M&A spree, scoops up FarmTest
Growers Edge is bolstering its financial services and digital platform with a robust merger and acquisition (M&A) strategy, including the purchase of FarmTest and Aquaoso Technologies
VC agtech deal count reaches lowest level in several years amid ‘flight to quality,’ PitchBook reports
A great agtech funding realignment is underway, as money moves from biotech to precision ag companies
Can Ÿnsect reinvent itself? French protein player faces crucial test
Once hailed as a global pioneer in insect-based protein production, Ÿnsect continues its fight for survival
Winning the mushroom-growing game: 4AG Robotics raises $40m CAD to scale harvesting robots
4AG Robotics is deploying Series B funding to bolster its ability to make mushroom-harvesting robots, which are digging into the root challenges facing mushroom growers today
Biostimulants start-up Agrobiomics eyes market launch after EIC funding
The “snake oil” days of biostimulants are well and truly over says Danish bio-ag firm Agrobiomics after sealing up to €7.5 million in blended finance from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator programme
Spanish vertical farmer Néboda repels ‘tough market’ with €1.84m raise
Tackling the sector’s “biggest challenge” of cost competitiveness was key to closing a funding round to consolidate its pre-industrial vertical farming model, the start-up says
BiomEdit nets over $18m in Series B to commercialize engineered probiotic biologic
Participation from AgriZeroNZ set to accelerate US firm’s methane emissions reduction technology
Solynta secures €20m EIB loan to speed its potato tech
Dutch company Solynta has grabbed a €20 million venture debt financing agreement from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to accelerate roll-out of its true potato seeds
New €1 billion EU-wide funding for agtech sustainability
The European Investment Bank (EIB) signed partnerships with Rabobank and DLL to provide €1 billion in loans targeting SMEs and mid-caps focused on sustainability and agriculture
Doktar eyes growth after €7.5m fundraise
Dutch-based precision ag company Doktar is primed for expansion after securing €7.5 million in funds, it tells us
World Agri-Tech South America Summit 2025
The bulls on Brazil: 3 VCs discuss how the country can capitalize on ag momentum
Capital investments in Brazil is crucial to unlocking the next stage of growth for the country’s ag sector, as a trio of investors shared with AgTechNavigator during the 2025 World Agri-Tech South America Summit
‘Balanced and diverse portfolios’ can reap investor rewards, says Supernova Invest
Investors can fend off the downtrend by focusing on diversification, dual technologies and embracing the sector’s cyclical and unpredictable nature, claims Romain Sautrau, partner and head of agri-food tech investments at French venture capital firm...
Agtech funding in 2025 ‘is not all doom and gloom,’ Rabobank reports
Agtech start-ups that find creative solutions to capital and commercial partnerships are well positioned to navigate the challenging funding climate
Transforming knowledge: welzo eyes SEA for agtech innovation, knowledge sharing to enhance farming
Japan’s welzo is exploring opportunities in South East Asia, recognising the region’s thriving agricultural sector as fertile ground for innovation in knowledge sharing and productivity enhancement.
The whys and wherefores of agtech exits: the empirical evidence
High corn prices do appear to create better circumstances for agtech acquisitions, says Michael Lee, managing director at Syngenta Group Ventures, in this absorbing deep dive of what’s driving investment and exit opportunities in the world of agtech...
Investors set for ‘vintage’ years, says Anterra’s Adam Anders
Good things are coming for agri-food tech investors, believes Adam Anders, managing partner at Anterra Capital, because the ‘talent is there, the problem got bigger, and technology is getting cheaper’. But it will not be without risk, he tells Harry Holmes
RootWave targets becoming global player in weed control after raising $15m
The British company – which uses electricity to eliminate weeds and replace chemical herbicides – celebrates raising $15 million from international investors and the UK government. It will be used to accelerate sales and expand RootWave’s product...
De Heus and Agrifirm deals: Further consolidation in European feed industry
There has been further consolidation and strategic realignment in the European feed sector
Farm Credit Canada bets big on homegrown agtech with $2 billion commitment
Can FCC’s major agtech commitment close the VC funding gap between Canada and US?
State of VC funding: Lever VC discusses agtech opportunities, challenges
Lever VC searches for innovative agtech startups to round out its Fund II roster, as the firm watches the evolving macroeconomic climate for portfolio implications
Agronomy platform FarmQA tees up potential M&A deals, growth with $4m funding round
FarmQA is scaling growth with the help of an oversubscribed seed round — bucking agtech funding trends — as it sets sights on further acquisitions and partnerships
Can Verdi switch on farmers to the benefits of automated irrigation?
Canadian company Verdi – which has just raised $6.5M CAD ($4.7 million USD) to expand – retrofits existing farm irrigation equipment with smart, wireless devices and a digital management platform. The strategy can make irrigation automation accessible to...
Agfintech start-up Growers Edge seeks to scale after $25M fundraise
Financial risk is one of the most critical barriers to agricultural innovation, says US-based Growers Edge
AI, healthier food alternatives dominate in Future Food Asia Award Top 10 finalist list
Future Food Asia (FFA) has unveiled the top 10 list of agrifoodtech start-ups vying for the US$100,000 FFA Award, with companies presenting new AI tech and healthier food alternatives dominating the final list.
FFAR accelerates agtech innovation to combat disease, boost US farm resilience
FFAR also aims to lower production costs, and help reduce prices for US consumers
WATCH: SOSV’s Po Bronson shrugs off ‘cautious’ mood among VC investors
Investment in agtech start-ups plummeted last year. Not that the always ebullient venture capital investor Po Bronson seems to have noticed. “Just find good stuff and believe in it”, he tells us.
‘Crucial for climate impact’: Ag startups from APAC sought for new accelerator programme
Startups from Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam are being sought for a new accelerator programme from ClimAccelerator and Better Earth Ventures.
From hype to hypervigilance: Is the agtech capital drought down to macroeconomics or a wider culture problem?
Whisper it, but we have reached the bottom of the agtech venture capital cycle, proclaimed investors at the recent World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco. But don’t expect to party like it’s 2021. For start-ups and VCs alike, the focus is on...
Brazil’s Grão Direto raises $15M to accelerate digitalisation of global grain trading
The digitalisation of grain trading is set to bring numerous and far-reaching benefits, says Grão Direto as it announces as $15 million series B fundraise.
Exclusive
Seadling gets $1M to propel sustainable seaweed innovation
Malaysia-based Seadling, a biotech company specialising in sustainable seaweed-based functional ingredients, has announced the successful close of its US $1 million seed investment round.