Animal AgTech, The Sector’s Awkward Uncle, Proudly Struts Its Stuff In San Fran
Animal agtech is no innovation backwater as the inaugural ReThink summit focused on the sector proved last week in San Francisco.
Tag Archives: Investor Insight
“Basic Farm Tech Tools Won’t Provide VCs the Exit Returns They Need, So Why Are VCs Still Investing in Them?”
Nolan Paul, Partner at Yamaha Motor Ventures and ex-head of R&D Strategy and Emerging Technology at leading produce grower Driscoll's is offering his thoughts on how the agritech sector is developing ahead of his speaking slot at World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco next month.
EXCLUSIVE: Founder of Agtech’s First Unicorn David Friedberg Reveals Investment Portfolio of The Production Board
You may have seen The Production Board crop up on a few agrifood tech investments, but there's little publicly-available information about the investment holding company founded by David Friedberg. Until now.
Why Did Global Food Giant ADM Invest in Volcanic Microbes?
ADM Ventures is purposeful about the types of companies it considers investing in.
Woman-Led Midwest Angel Investment Firm iiM Invests $2.4m in 6 AgriFood Tech Startups
Kansas City-based angel investment firm iiM (Innovation in Motion) has invested in a variety of early-stage agrifood tech startup companies covering everything from a bio-based plastic alternative to oral vaccines for livestock and companion animals.
80 Acres Farms Raises $40m to Complete ‘First Fully Automated Vertical Farm’
The new facility will be automated from seeding to growing to harvesting featuring handling robotics, artificial intelligence, data analytics, and around-the-clock monitoring sensors and control systems to optimize every aspect of growing produce indoors.
Merck Acquires Digital Livestock Tech Antelliq for $2.4bn in Biggest Agtech Acquisition on Record
US pharmaceutical company Merck has acquired digital livestock and animal health tech company Antelliq Group for €2.1 billion ($2.37 billion).
Antelliq manufactures sensors for animals, including ear tags for dairy cows through a product called Allflex that can monitor cows’ activity and provide traceability.
Argentina’s Top Agritech Startup Bioceres to List on NYSE Raising $100m+ in Reverse IPO
Bioceres, the Argentinian ag biotech business, is set to list on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) early next year through a reverse listing with a company controlled by Uruguyuan presidential hopeful Juan Sartori.
In Ovo Closes Series A to Combat Male Chick Culling in Egg Industry with VisVires New Protein
Dutch startup In Ovo has completed a Series A raise with Singapore-based disruptive food system venture fund VisVires New Protein and global specialty chemicals company Evonik.
Flagship Pioneering GP Martinez: We’ve Benefitted from Mega-Mergers in Agriculture
"We’ve been lucky with what's been going on in the agriculture industry with the major acquisitions," Ignacio Martinez from Flagship Pioneering tells AgFunderNews.
Key Takeaways from FoodTrack by Maersk as 2nd Edition Opens for Applications
Building on the positive learnings of the 1st edition, the 2nd edition of FoodTrack by Maersk will commence in November 2018 and Maersk is currently accepting applications from agrifood tech startups to take part.
Argentina’s Minister for Entrepreneurs Places Focus on Agtech For Country’s ‘Avant-Garde Farmers’
The government of President Mauricio Macri, who took office in 2015, is working hard to open up its markets and attract investment from overseas and the agriculture and venture capital industries are a key part of that policy.
Former Whole Foods Co-CEO Walter Robb Joins S2G Ventures as Exec-in-Residence
We caught up with former Whole Foods co-CEO Walter Robb to find out what the view of the food tech gold rush of recent years looked like from the grocery floor and what's on his mind as he shifts from CEO to advisor and investor.
Why Tyson Ventures is Investing in Sustainability and the Internet of Food
Tom Mastrobuoni, CFO of Tyson Ventures, speaks in-depth about the company's targeted investment areas and the rationale for investing in Beyond Meat, Memphis Meat, Future Meat, Tovala and FoodLoqiQ.
Taranis Acquires Aerial Imagery Platform Mavrx
It is understood that Mavrx ran into some financial and operational difficulty in recent months and was not able to service its clients for the upcoming growing season despite providing a popular product with a 90% customer renewal rate.
Farmland Investor on Agtech: ‘A Lot of People Overpromise and Underdeliver’
We caught up with farmland investor Shonda Warner to find out where frustrations with agtech startups start for farmers, and what low commodities prices mean for tech startups.
Monsanto’s Venture Arm Could Be Winding Down, Sources Suggest, As Company Looks for New Talent
Monsanto Growth Ventures, the venture arm of Monsanto, has lost all of its dedicated staff after former managing director John Hamer, former investment director Kiersten Stead and former principal Ryan Rakestraw all left within a month of each other.
Why Qualcomm Ventures Sees Farm Connectivity Challenges as Opportunity
We caught up with Carlos Kokron, vice president and managing director at Qualcomm Ventures to find out how the corporate VC manages such an international portfolio of investments and where it's looking next for growth.
What is the Prototypical Agtech Exit?
At the closing investor discussion at the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco on March 21, three agrifood investors concluded that though the exits of 2017 were good to see, they weren’t necessarily as replicable as many may hope.
Germin8 Ventures Launches AgriFood Tech Fund with Industry Backing and an Eye on Israel
We caught up with Michael Lavin, founder and managing partner of Germin8 Ventures ahead of Agrivest Israel, to discuss his goals and investments so far.