Agtech - So What?

The history of agriculture is a history of selective breeding. Whether it’s plants or animals, humans have been choosing desirable traits and making sure those traits make it to the next generation for tens of thousands of years. The challenge of this work is, of course, the timeline. Groundbreaking and world-changing advances are possible, but we are limited by seasonality, gestation periods, and even by the level of expertise required to effectively perform the high-tech work. This is the challenge that Tenacious portfolio company Nbryo is tackling– shortening the timeline for genetic advancements in livestock. This week, we’re sitting down with Gerard Davis, CEO of Nbyro, to discuss his unconventional journey to the startup, the work the company is doing, and why he thinks genetic interventions are critical climate work. For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

Despite its importance to both agricultural and environmental outcomes, irrigation has not been a terribly successful subsection of agtech. We have our theories about why that is (we wrote a whole report about it, The agtech adoption dilemma: Irrigation), and many others have also spotted the challenges in this space. But when Jairo Trad and his team dug in, they saw an opportunity for business model innovation. Their path, via Argentinian agtech company Kilimo, has been far from smooth, but where they’ve ended up seems to be a unique unlock for adoption and value capture. This week, we’re sitting down with Jairo, CEO and Cofounder at Kilimo, who’s spent the last 14 years expanding the boundaries of the ag-water system to find the right answer to the question “who pays for water efficiency improvements.” For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

Depending on where you sit, the supremacy of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) action seems inevitable. Corporates are talking about. Investors are talking about it. Governments, regulators, and even farmers are talking about it. And yet for many of us, the questions of what exactly ESG is, what pursuing these goals means, and how soon acting on them will be mandatory remain unanswered. Then just when it feels like we start to get a handle on a definition or a timeline, you leave one geography and enter another, and it seems like all the rules have changed! This level of ambiguity has piqued our interest to learn more about trends in ESG, global variations in ESG practices, and what the future might hold. So this week, we’re sitting down with Catherine Marriott, recent Nuffield Australia Awardee, who has spent the last year traveling around the world to learn about the current and future state of ESG in agriculture.For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

Farmland has long been a popular asset among investors for its steady appreciation and resistance to economic downturns. At the same time, farmland is also a challenging asset at times, especially for farmers looking to expand, given farmland comes up for sale so infrequently and is so valuable. In the space between these two needs is where Fractal Agriculture has set up shop, connecting the dots between farmers seeking capital and investors looking to benefit from farmland investments. And for good measure, sprinkle in some regenerative ag practices for risk mitigation on both sides of the ledger. Today, Sarah and Shane Thomas, author of Upstream Ag Insights, sit down with Ben Gordon, co-founder and CEO of Fractal Ag, to break down the pitch in real time. Along the way, they share insights, ask questions, and decide whether they’d invest in the endeavor.  For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.