Tag: monsanto

Brief: Former Monsanto CTO Robb Fraley joins Trace Genomics board

April 15, 2021

Dr Robb Fraley, former CTO of Monsanto, has joined the board of directors at soil health diagnostics startup Trace Genomics.

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.

Climate Corp’s Former Head of Product Joins Arable as CEO

August 16, 2018

The current state of the digital ag space lacks sufficient high-quality data, but that’s where Ethington sees potential in Arable, he tells AgFunderNews.

The Future of Venture Capital at Bayer-Monsanto: It’s Complicated

June 6, 2018

A few details about the future of venture capital at the new integrated Bayer have emerged, but according to Bayer Crop Science CEO Liam Condon, firm plans are still months away.

Bayer CropScience CEO Discusses Post Monsanto Merger Innovation Strategy

May 8, 2018

As the eventual conclusion of Bayer’s acquisition of Monsanto draws closer, all eyes are on the German healthcare and agriculture giant to find out what the new normal will look like. In agriculture, Liam Condon, CEO of Bayer CropScience, will have the primary role in shaping that new reality.

Monsanto’s Venture Arm Could Be Winding Down, Sources Suggest, As Company Looks for New Talent

April 26, 2018

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.

Ag Industry Brief: FBN Makes Moves in Canada, Bayer Sells Digital to BASF, more

April 13, 2018

Farmers Business Network makes an acquisition in Canada while Bayer sells assets to get ready for the big takeover, plus more in this week’s brief.

Understory’s Move into Agriculture Comes into Focus with Monsanto Partnership

April 9, 2018

After one year of testing, Monsanto is collaborating with hyper-local weather data provider Understory to optimize the company’s seed production operation in Argentina.

Ag Industry Brief: Y Combinator Sweet On Cultured Meat, Granular Partners with Planet, Another Startup Pays for Data, more

March 23, 2018

Granular and Monsanto have new partners, Y Combinator requests cultured meat proposals and more in this week’s brief.

Monsanto Invests in $25m Series A for Pairwise after Cofounding CRISPR Startup

March 20, 2018

Pairwise is a CRISPR startup founded by Monsanto Growth Ventures and some of the foremost scientists behind the fundamentals of gene-editing.

TechAccel Backs Chloroplast Engineering Startup Plastomics

February 8, 2018

Plastomics is working to shorten the pipeline for developing new seeds with multiple transgenic traits, increasing the speed and lowering the cost of designing new seeds using chloroplast engineering.

Checking in With Climate Corp’s Open Platform Strategy and the Future of Ag Data

January 30, 2018

The decision to make the platform open, Climate Corp’s CTO Mark Young explains, was not only part of an effort to bring more value to customers, but also to move the digital ag space forward.

Glyphosate Gets EU Greenlight for Five More Years

November 28, 2017

The decision comes after weeks of votes and protests about the future of the controversial chemical in the EU, which has been far more skeptical than other parts of the world regarding glyphosate and the genetically-modified seeds created to resist it by Monsanto.

Is St. Louis the Silicon Valley of Agtech?

November 2, 2017

The city has companies from all over the globe relocating to take advantage of the wealth of resources at hand, but it also suffers from an exodus of companies that reach a certain point. What makes St. Louis a serious contender for the leading agtech ecosystem?

Ceres Imaging Raises Additional $2.5m to Support Crop Expansion After Climate Corp Partnership

November 1, 2017

After starting in the orchards and vineyards more common to its home base, the West Coast, Ceres recently entered the row crop space largely through a partnership with Monsanto’s The Climate Corporation.

Ag Industry Brief: California Cuts Food Waste, Europe to Vote on Glyphosate Ban, Rabo Launches $1bn Fund, more

October 20, 2017

On Tuesday, October 24, the European Parliament will vote on whether to ban Monsanto’s controversial pesticide glyphosate in the next three years, plus more industry news in our weekly brief.

Ag Industry Brief: Agsolver Gets Acquired, Danforth Working on Biofuel for DOE, Walmart Moves into Same-day Delivery, more

October 6, 2017

Monsanto Growth Ventures portfolio company Agsolver has sold to a Texas-based agricultural software provider, new hires, and more Aussie IPOs in this week’s brief.