The timing of KKR’s vote of confidence is particularly interesting as concerns mount about the future of some vertical farms, but Bowery CEO Irving Fain says it’s a positive inflection point for the industry.
Infarm is doubling down on its Growing Centres with a target to have 100 across 20 countries by 2030. The Qatar Investment Authority will work with it to build the emirate’s first Growing Centre by 2023.
Novel Farming Systems ventures – which include tech-enabled vertical farms and greenhouses – may be losing their luster for investors.
Novel Farming Systems ventures raised a total of $911 million in funding during the first six months of the year, according to AgFunder data.
N.Thing said the funds will go towards worldwide commercialization of CUBE, its modular, software-powered vertical farming system.
Artemis and iUNU will explore opportunities to offer more financing solutions to their CEA customers after the deal completes.
It will use a chunk of the funding to open its largest facility yet: a leafy greens and berries-focused greenhouse in Lockhart, Texas.
They’re hoping the insights they derive will revolutionize outdoor production, too.
Novel Farming Systems – which includes CEA, aquaculture, and insect production – was the second best-funded agtech category last year, according to AgFunder.
The US startup said it plans to build a “national network of new high-tech farms that will accelerate the salad industry’s transition to indoor farming.”
The startup aims to grow its footprint across Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as US regions “where growing conditions are harsh.”
In the wake of a $160 million Series B round, 80 Acres CEO Mike Zelkind argues that some valuations in the indoor ag industry are exaggerated.
CropWalk CEO Charlie McKenzie said that his company’s clients “want us around more often; with iUNU, we can be there all the time.”
AppHarvest also announced the appointment of former Amazon tech exec Mark Keller to head up its on-farm robotics efforts.
CEO Erez Galonska said the deal “represents one of the largest rollouts of any vertical farming company in North America to date.”
The Singaporean startup is deploying its robotics platform across multiple industries – including indoor ag, where it streamlines crop inspection and harvesting.
The Portland-based firm has closed its second indoor agriculture fund well beyond its $500 million target.
It claims to be the US’s largest indoor farming operation to be certified organic by the USDA – and the country’s leading supplier of fresh herbs.
The Montanan startup claims it can offer “superior unit economics” thanks to a “unique hybrid facility configuration” combining conventional greenhouses with vertical farming.
Bowery just closed the biggest-ever vertical farming funding round. Listen to our recent podcast with its CEO Irving Fain here.
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