Agtech Action | Week of 03.02.24 - 03.08.24
Agtech Action is a weekly newsletter highlighting and commenting on current events in the world of agtech
Zombie VCs, Elon sues to have ‘Open’ not ‘ClosedAI’, and Bayer says ‘not now’ for crop science split. Lithium batteries from cow hair, livestock veterinarian shortage and food safety, and are carbon pipelines done?
The game in venture capital is this: raise money, find interesting and worthy ventures and invest in them. Venture fund, and fundraising, plays an important role but we need more venture builders! In this week’s newsletter, I’ll discuss the importance venture building, what it is and how it can overcome agtech’s challenges.
Food and the World:
‘The lifeblood of the community’: States invest to save rural grocery stores
65% of the Nation’s Dairy Herd Lives On 1,000-Plus-Cow Operations
Research shows relationship between certain properties and foodborne pathogens in leafy greens
Texas Panhandle firefighters battle blaze before wind gusts return
EPA creates new ag and rural affairs office (more government never solves things)
Union workers reject contract, authorize strike, Kroger responds
China's Buys of Corn and Sorghum Are Surging Right Now, But Why?
USDA issues fair play rule on livestock marketing, part of White House competition drive
Proposed carbon pipeline adds more ethanol plants as lawmakers debate regulations
Can Soybeans Stage A Comeback?
Whole Foods Market to debut small-format stores, starting in NYC
Texas wildfires: What we know about farmers and ranchers near Smokehouse Creek Fire
Use ‘non-prime’ farmland for renewable energy, says Vilsack
USDA issues fair play rule on livestock marketing, part of White House competition drive
Applegate to transition all beef hot dogs to regeneratively sourced
Whole bird turkey markets concern Hormel Foods
Aldi acquires Southeastern Grocers, plans to add 800 U.S. stores
Walmart Makes Plans to Build Third New Milk Processing Plant, This Time in Texas
March WASDE: USDA steps down Brazil soybean production
Agtech in the News:
Climate tech’s strong performance will be tough act to repeat
Boomitra and Terra Carbono Forge Partnership to Advance Regenerative Agriculture in Brazil
Researchers create lithium batteries with cow hair
Start-ups in Africa raised $217 million in February 2024, on par with 2020 and 2021 levels
Bayer Says “Not Now” For Division Split Or Sell Off
Bunge and Chevron to build a new processing plant
2024 Commodity Classic: 3 Farmers Talk Technology and Equipment
Grassroots Carbon Allocated $3M in 2023 For Soil Carbon Drawdown Credits To Ranchers
Big St. Louis biotech firm makes acquisition
Andreessen Horowitz targets $7B close for growth, sector focused funds
Telus Formally Announces Acquisition of Proagrica
Farmers Share Biological Experiences Through New Mosaic Initiative
Fun:
Iowa farmland brings over $26,000 per acre
Request for Leadership to Accelerate Publication of Promised Alcohol Labeling Rules
What does the law say when your neighbor won’t help with fencing?
Helpful Resources:
Tyson Foods Seeks Startups to Innovate the Future of Food Supply Chain (apply now)
2023 VC Emerging Opportunities
Q1 2024 IPO Pipeline: Identifying Potential VC-Backed IPO Candidates in 2024
2023 Annual Global Private Market Fundraising Report
2023 US All In: Female Founders in the VC Ecosystem
Interesting Reads:
The end of the carbon pipeline?
Kellogg CEO under fire for suggesting cereal as a money-saving dinner (save money but ignore the other consequences)
Binance: Nigeria orders cryptocurrency firm to pay $10B
There’s a Shortage of Livestock Veterinarians and It’s Making Our Food Less Safe (it continues)
Rural Firefighters to Farmers: Help Us Help You
Is oat milk unhealthy? That’s the wrong question. (so much journalism here)
Black farmer looks to rethink stigma of picking cotton
South Dakota legislature passes ‘Landowner Bill of Rights’ for carbon pipeline projects
S.E.C. Approves New Climate Rules Far Weaker Than Originally Proposed
To farm or fabricate? 3D printing’s role in the food industry
Mitsui & Co., Suzano Partner To Explore New Biomaterial Alternatives From Eucalyptus
BlueNalu Becomes First Cell-Cultured Seafood Company to Enter National Fisheries Institute
Coffee’s chromosome mutations: The potential for industry
How a Solar Revolution in Farming Is Depleting World’s Groundwater
New banana plant variety discovered in Oman
Elon Musk Sues OpenAI, Sam Altman, Saying They Abandoned Founding Mission
Where Did John Deere Get The Steel That Changed History?
Common offer to lease farmland for solar panels: $1,000 an acre (this is where agtech pisses me off! This is a horrible idea to take land out of production for solar!)
Will Europe's Farmer Protests Make Their Way To The U.S.?
Going green for greater profit
Vinod Khosla slams Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI, calling it 'sour grapes'
Why drought on the prairies is making your steak more expensive
Daylight Saving is Good, Actually
The Extraordinary Lives Of Coast Redwoods
A Rare Look Inside Britain’s ‘Sublime Society of Beefsteaks’
Finance:
Timberland GPs ‘retool’ amid natural capital demand
Chipotle Is Investing $100 Million in the Future of Food — and Is Open to Your Ideas
Cibus Capital Secures $645M to Fuel In The Agrifood Sector
More tech talent is seeking purpose-driven work in Europe
Hatch celebrates raising €75 million for Blue Revolution Fund
New Forests completes deployment of Australia New Zealand Forest Fund 3
SURS issues RFP for real assets fund managers
It's becoming insane again in venture capital: A tiny AI startup wants investors to pay $100 to book a meeting with its founder. (humble yourself; you clearly don’t get it nor have something compelling)
Ardian and aDryada recruit for nature-based solutions fund
Varaha Raises $8.7 Million to Accelerate Agricultural Decarbonization
Agriloops Closes On €13M For Commercial Scale Aquaponics Farms
Summa Equity invests in fish health company
Jupiter Ionics Secures $9 Million for Green Ammonia Technology
Theme of the Agtech Week: Venture Building
Building ventures is hard! Entrepreneurs know how difficult it is to build a technology, a startup, a business. But building a venture is an important teaching tool for entrepreneurs, investors and the ecosystem? Why?
First, let’s define venture building. Here’s what it is:
Building a technology, a product and a business from that (actually make sales).
Formation of a business, and a team that is aligned and oriented towards making this thing successful.
Taking an idea and turning it into a business.
It is truly building something from scratch. Why is venture building important? It’s a teaching tool for the following:
Focus and determination. It will teach you how to laser focus on building, and it will humble you to continue on if you truly believe in it.
Receiving and integrating feedback. You will receive feedback. The question is will you take it in?
Service-to-others. Building something that solves a problem for others is the ultimate service-to-others. The best venture builders keep this in mind rather than wanting their technology to succeed.
When you embark on the journey of building a venture, you realize very quickly how little you know and how much you have to learn. It humbles you and it can rock your foundation, if you let it, or it can reinvigorate you if you allow it. In my opinion, venture capitalists would benefit from building ventures themselves because it would teach them all of these lessons and ultimately the most consequential lesson for them, which is to be a better picker. You will know what to look for because you’ve been there.
In the next few weeks, we’ll give you some updates on the Soy Innovation Challenge 2023 and the finalists, the press conference at Commodity Classic 2024 and what is coming next!
Thanks for reading.
BD
Brandon Day is the Chief Operating Officer of The Yield Lab Institute, the global agtech think-tank, ecosystem builder, non-profit arm of The Yield Lab global network of venture capital funds. The views, opinions and commentary expressed are solely those of Brandon Day.