AgFunder Network Partners

Category: Investment News

BREAKING: PatternAg raises $15m to crunch soil DNA data

October 27, 2020

The Emeryville, California startup has been developing biological analytics of soil DNA data to offer farmers crop protection insights and forecasts.

BREAKING: Kaffe Bueno brews up $1.3m funding to upcycle coffee grounds into functional ingredients

October 27, 2020

Less than 1% of coffee’s beneficial compounds are extracted when you make a cup of coffee, according to Denmark’s Kaffe Bueno.

NovaQuest, Mileutis sign $20m deal for peptides to protect cow udders

October 26, 2020

Bovine mastitis is a major financial and welfare problem for dairy farmers, but standard antibiotic treatments are increasingly controversial.

Alibaba pays $3.6bn to acquire hypermarket chain in tech-driven ‘new retail’ push

October 23, 2020

Sun Art operates close to 500 stores across China which have been integrated with Alibaba’s food e-commerce platforms Taoxianda and Tmall Supermarket.

BrightFarms raises $100m in Cox-led Series E round to expand throughout the US

October 22, 2020

Cox Enterprises now holds a majority stake in BrightFarms, which will use the new funding to construct three new greenhouses in North Carolina, Massachusetts, and Texas.

With $1.2m in fresh funding, SpaceSense sees satellite data as agtech’s next frontier

October 22, 2020

Remote sensing startups like France’s SpaceSense generate satellite data insights for precision agriculture by developing pattern recognition algorithms.

SoftBank’s Son agitates for Southeast Asian food delivery mega-merger: report

October 19, 2020

The SoftBank CEO is “stepping up pressure” on Anthony Tan, co-founder and CEO at Singapore-based Grab, to work out a “ceasefire” with his counterparts at Gojek.

Plenty scoops up $140m in Series D round led by Driscoll’s and SoftBank

October 15, 2020

Plenty will use the funding to build out its new Compton, CA, facility and to research strawberry cultivation alongside new investor Driscoll’s.

Where are the world’s first ‘lab burger’ growers now? Enlarging their Series B raise

October 14, 2020

Dutch startup Mosa Meat is expecting a second close of its Series B round in “the next few months” following a $55 million first tranche.

Pontifax AgTech closes latest fund at $302m

October 9, 2020

Fund II is timely given “scarcity of sector-focused growth capital and challenges and opportunities created by Covid-19,” managing partner Phil Erlanger told AFN.

Soil testing startup Krishitantra secures $1m seed capital from Omnivore, NABVentures

October 8, 2020

The funding will enable the Indian startup to take its rapid soil testing kit and analytics services to the country’s 130 million smallholder farmers.

With $68m in fresh funding, Revol Greens plans to build the world’s largest indoor farm

October 7, 2020

Minnesota’s Revol Greens has plans to build new greenhouse facilities in California and Texas – the latter of which could be the world’s largest to date.

UK government earmarks $13m for industrial insect farm

October 7, 2020

London insect farming startup Entocycle will lead the project, which will aim to build a facility that rears black soldier flies by the millions.

BREAKING: Ÿnsect extends Series C to $372m, targets pet food & aims for carbon-negative status

October 6, 2020

The French startup – which farms mealworms to produce ingredients for fish feed, pet food, and crop fertilizers – claims it’s the biggest insect protein round ever.

BREAKING: Syngenta acquires biologicals company Valagro

October 6, 2020

Italy’s Valagro produces biostimulants and specialty nutrients for farming, as well as specialty ingredients for use in food, cosmetics, and animal feed.

The rise of the reused machines: Germany’s E-Farm raises $5.3m Series A

October 1, 2020

The Hamburg-based startup has built an online marketplace for secondhand agricultural machinery, using AI-powered valuation and offering EU-wide warranties.

CEA startup AppHarvest to go public, expects $475m funding at $1bn valuation

October 1, 2020

Kentucky’s AppHarvest will join the NASDAQ through a merger with special-purpose vehicle Novus Capital, while its new 60-acre facility prepares for launch.

Step aside, alt-protein: Bioplastics are the real agrifoodtech opportunity

September 30, 2020

Despite ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ drives, single use of petroleum-based plastic has grown 5x since 1980 – with a mere 5% recycled. Plastic pollution remains a problem in need of a solution.

Aqua-Spark leads $12.6m Series A round for Singapore alt-seafood startup Shiok Meats

September 30, 2020

Shiok Meats is the first ‘lab-grown seafood’ venture in the aquaculture-focused VC’s portfolio, Aqua-Spark co-founder Amy Novogratz told AFN.

Turkish delight as Tarfin raises $5m Series A for its smallholder lending app

September 25, 2020

Istanbul-based Tarfin offers access to extended payments for smallholder farmers, and creates pools of receivables for institutional investors as asset-backed securities.