Tag: corporate venture capital

Behind the scenes at the top agrifood CVCs

June 23, 2021

There’s nothing new about agrifood corporates investing directly in strategic technologies – but it is now a mainstream approach.

Brief: Scoular launches new division to incubate early-stage investment opportunities

June 2, 2021

Scoular will look for investment opportunities in biofuels, renewable energy, carbon markets, and more through the newly established incubator.

Cargill restructures corporate venture group into newly-centralized unit

March 15, 2021

Cargill is consolidating is corporate venture investing and partnership activity under a centralized unit, Cargill’s new head of corporate ventures Erin VanLanduit tells AFN.

Agtech CVC: FMC Ventures on launching a corporate venture group in 2020

March 3, 2021

FMC Ventures’ Amar Singh speaks with AFN about the advantages and challenges of being the newcomer in agrifood corporate venture investing and its laser-focus on crop protection.

Agtech CVC: ADM Ventures on the many ways corporations can invest in innovators

February 25, 2021

ADM Ventures’ Victoria de la Huerga talks with AFN working for a company that was acquired by ADM–then helping the corporation build its venture investing strategy.

Agtech CVC: BASF Venture Capital on ‘catalyzing change for the chemicals industry’

February 17, 2021

Bioinformatics. Drone surveillance. Farm robotics. BASF Venture Capital’s Markus Solibieda talks to AFN about tech innovations the company’s backing to complement and disrupt the agri-chemicals status quo.

Agtech CVC: Cargill on the agrifood industry’s reluctant digital shift

February 11, 2021

The essential aspect of food makes the agrifood industry less volatile – and less nimble – than other industries. Cargill’s SriRaj Kantamneni talks with AFN about investing for the industry’s digital future.

Agtech CVC: Leaps by Bayer on adopting an impact lens for corporate venturing

January 26, 2021

The agrifood industry wondered how Bayer would approach venture investing after its acquisition of Monsanto. Derek Norman talks with AFN about the company’s turn to impact investing.

Agtech CVC: Syngenta Ventures on ChemChina, business model innovation & ‘agri-fintech’

January 12, 2021

Syngenta Ventures was one of the earliest corporate VC initiatives dedicated to agriculture. Shubang Shankar talks with AFN about the group’s priorities and opportunities.

Orbia launches $130m venture fund, injects $3m into plant health startup SeeTree

November 25, 2020

Orbia Ventures will target Series A and B deals with a $1 million to $6 million check size, focusing on startups that are strategically aligned with its Mexican parent company.

AgTech NEXT 2020: Impossible’s Pat Brown in his own words, corporate partnerships, and the new realities of “risk” after Covid

September 17, 2020

This post is part of a collaboration with the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center. The research institute is hosting its first AgTech NEXT conference—virtually—from September

Farmer survey encourages Syngenta to commit $2bn to sustainable ag by 2025 & two tech breakthroughs each year

June 30, 2020

The Good Growth Plan is a response to a recent survey showing that 72% of farmers have concerns about the impact of climate change.

LIC lost out on Afimilk courtesy of Covid-19. But it’s still hunting for tech deals, says CEO

June 11, 2020

One of Covid-19’s biggest agrifoodtech casualties so far is the New Zealand farmer co-op’s scuppered $70 million investment in Afimilk.

Tokyo: People walk by SoftBank mobile phone network store in Tokyo, Japan. There are 146.6 million mobile phones in use in Japan (2013).

SoftBank reports $24bn loss on startup investments, with agrifood performance unclear

May 19, 2020

SoftBank was among the world’s most active investors in the agrifoodtech space last year, according to AgFunder research.

How should agtech startups approach exits? 5 tips from AgTech:Acquired webinar

May 6, 2020

Find out where and when exits will come, how startups can get acquisition-ready, and how the landscape is changing with Covid-19.

Agrifood corporates turn to startups to hedge disruptions and get an edge on trends

May 4, 2020

The Covid-19 crisis offers a stark warning of how vulnerable the food chain is to shocks, and underscores the value of corporations’ engagement with startups to spur new agri-foodtech solutions ahead.

SoftBank, one of 2019’s top agrifood investors, forecasts $24bn loss on its startup bets

April 15, 2020

While Covid-19 has made things worse for SoftBank investees, much of the loss can be ascribed to the already poor performance of companies across the Japanese firm’s portfolio.

BRIEF: SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son predicts bankruptcy for 15 Vision Fund portfolio cos

April 7, 2020

The Japanese company was one of the top agrifood investors worldwide last year, and its Vision Fund has backed food and agriculture startups such as Plenty, Zume, and DoorDash.