Tag: Europe

Distributed mini-farms & carbon-neutral eggs: The next phase of Black Soldier Fly farming

July 2, 2020

The world of Black Soldier Fly farming is diversifying. Here’s how.

Opinion: Where the World Resources Institute got it wrong about regenerative agriculture

July 1, 2020

WRI’s criticism of regenerative agriculture based on its conclusions about the feasibility of carbon sequestration is a foolish exercise in throwing the bovine out with the bathwater.

Future Food 🎙️: The future and sustainability of protein in our diets

June 24, 2020

In every conversation I have with the FoodShot team, I learn something new. Now they’re turning their attention to the protein debate with a unique approach.

Moo-re funds! Connecterra brings impact fund into largest-ever Series B for European livestock tech at €7.8m

June 24, 2020

Dutch impact investor syndicate called the Put Your Money Where Your Meaning Is Community joined the round alongside a UK investment firm and a French food safety company.

The Pirbright Institute is testing out new Covid-19, ASF vaccines on pigs

June 23, 2020

Scientists at the UK’s Pirbright Institute, working in collaboration with the University of Oxford and the pharmaceuticals giant Astra Zeneca, have shown how a prospective Covid-19 vaccine for humans can successfully boost a pig’s immune response to the virus.

Precision Protein: The key to a future-proof food system

June 18, 2020

Two prominent academics from UC Davis and Wageningen agree that there is no time — either for the health of people or the planet — to be imprecise with our approach to protein, a macronutrient that is so resource-intensive and consequential to the environment.

Syngenta restructures, rebrands, and relaunches after taking $5.6bn Chinese biz on board

June 18, 2020

CEO Erik Fyrwald previously told AFN that Syngenta’s takeover by ChemChina “gives us the freedom for increased investment around seeds and crop protection.”

EU puts $20m into building a sugarbeet biorefinery to make organic acids

June 18, 2020

With the pursuit of carbon neutrality still looming large over political and corporate agendas, companies across Europe have been searching for new ways to unplug their production lines from petroleum-based products.

Digital Ag: Why is predicting return on investment per field so hard?

June 16, 2020

Several factors have kept farmers guessing which fields are producing the lion’s share of profit – and which are responsible for making losses, writes Dmytro Lennyi.

Designing proteins to replace preservatives, Protera closes $5.6m Series A, moves to France

June 11, 2020

CEO Leonardo Álvarez said there were near-term gains to be made by zeroing in on replacing unhealthy and ineffective ‘E-number’ chemical preservatives.

Seeking to save olive oil’s virginity or sleuth for horse meat, Europe’s Hyris and SwissDeCode gain funding

June 11, 2020

Two European testing technologies promising to avoid future scandals like horsemeat and olive oil fraud have raised funding this week.

Arieli Capital hopes for desert agri-miracles with funds for a new innovation center

June 9, 2020

Few would dispute that growing fish or strawberries in a desert is a remarkable idea, even in 2020.

Covid-19 is a boon for plant-based protein companies. Here are 3 things to get right

June 5, 2020

When developing the future of protein from plants, innovators must take heed of key lessons that this pandemic is teaching us about the fragility of our food systems.

Tropic Biosciences banks $28.5m in Temasek-led Series B for gene-editing, RNAi approach

June 3, 2020

Tropic plans to use the funding to commercialize its tech and to add rice to the roster of tropical crop cultivars it has in development.

UPDATE: Food industry giants including McDonalds meat suppliers called out for pandemic risk

June 2, 2020

Poor meat hygiene is suspected of causing Covid-19. Forty-four major animal protein firms pose a high risk of starting the next pandemic, new research says.

Why AgFunder invested in Singrow

June 2, 2020

Born out of the National University of Singapore, Singrow is directing its efforts towards local production of temperate-zone fruits and vegetables in tropical areas. And it’s starting with strawberries.

Future Food 🎙️: Oatly co-founder on scaling alt milk and the need for local food production

June 2, 2020

From IT to oat milk, Bjorn Oste started working with his oat milk-inventing brother Rickard in the 1990s to build Oatly, the hugely successful, Sweden-born oat milk company, known for its quirky marketing campaigns, and more recently for selling out in major grocery stores at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.