Agtech Action | Week of 11.20.21 - 11.26.21
Agtech Action is a weekly newsletter highlighting current events in the world of agtech, and some light-hearted commentary
Carbon capture project in the Midwest facing opposition, can farming the Amazon forest save it, and the most Googled Thanksgiving recipes by state. Walmart partners with a drone company, Senate legislation would ban some pesticides, and expect higher prices for your Christmas tree. Top agtech innovators to watch list, and why having both agtech and fintech partners in development is important.
To wrap up the agtech week, the theme is abundance, a perspective that aligns with the Thanksgiving week festivities and a perspective that agtech startups and innovators ought to consider as technology and innovation develops, deploys and scales in food and ag. We always bring you fresh and festive perspectives. Enjoy this week’s newsletter!
Food and the World:
Contract Livestock Producers Get $270 Million In Pandemic Aid
OSHA stops work on vax mandate to comply with appeals court's stay
EPA finds herbicides may harm endangered species, angering ag groups
U.S. imports of Peruvian grapes to rise again
Now Available: Award-winning documentary, ‘The Last Harvest,’ releases for free exclusively on Vimeo
Offset Fertilizer Costs with Variable-Rate Technology
In the Amazon, farming the forest to save the forest
The House passes BBB Act — Do the costs outweigh the benefits?
Will Fertilizer and Herbicide Prices Fall Before Spring? Why Experts Say It's Highly Unlikely
The Chickens That Didn’t Cross the Road in Laredo
The 5:2 diet is no more likely to serve up success than any other
Domestic grapefruit shippers alarmed by suspension of juice content requirement for imports
Top foodservice trends for Fall 2021, Spring 2022
Giant Pipeline in U.S. Midwest Tests Future of Carbon Capture
Smithfield finds first participants for its minority contract grower program
Dietary Diversity for Women Improves Nutrition Security for All
Type of packaging important, but consumers say price holds sway over decisions
Agtech in the News:
Optimum Agriculture backs The Yield Lab LatAm to fuel region’s agtech growth (Congrats to the Yield Lab LATAM team!)
Hazel Technologies expands to West Coast
Reflections on Agrifoodtech in a Time of Danger & Opportunity
Macron’s Digital Africa aims to boost Francophone tech
Carbon Farming Opportunities Beckon Farmers
Why West African investment firm chose Rwanda to domicile its investment vehicle
Maple Leaf Foods implements new housing system for pregnant sows
Every Body Eat wins $1 million Grow-NY grand prize
U+ Announces List of Top AgTech Innovators to Watch
Video killed the newsletter star (Africa newsletter)
Why is important to have partners in both Agtech and Fintech development?
Meatless Thanksgiving? 'Explosion' of plant-based options amid rising costs, fewer turkeys
Senate Bill Would Ban Broad Swath of Pesticides
Walmart and DroneUp announce first multi-site commercial drone delivery operations
Fun:
Adopt An Attitude Of Gratitude
Eco-friendly packaging key to help define sustainability, consumers say
Higher prices for Christmas Trees (0:05 mark)
The pardoned Thanksgiving turkeys, from last year, have a home (1:15 mark)
The most Googled Thanksgiving recipe in every state
Ridiculous Generosity (great newsletter by Janette Barnard)
Thank A Farmer, Today and Every Day
Helpful Resources:
What do crop gene editing regulations look like across the globe?
DACH Private Capital Breakdown
River’s End: CA’s latest water war
2020 Economic Study of St. Louis agtech
Interesting Reads:
What led to The Machinery Shortage Of 2021 and what to Expect for 2022
Grand launch for global offshore project
Africa to Afghanistan: Ambassador Kip Tom’s Lessons from the Global Food Crisis
How shorter crops could give farming a longer life
Resilience of Farmers on Full Display After Hurricane Ida Ravaged Louisiana Agriculture
Robotics and automation is primed to disrupt food and ag
Biotech company aiming to fight food spoilage starts with saving Washington state apples
Biggest-Ever Carbon Capture Project Facing Midwest Opposition
New Collaboration to Develop High-Quality Meat Alternatives
Nutrition Insecurity: The New Frontier
Survey: Top questions about organic from consumers, and the biggest market opportunity
Big Agriculture and Consolidation: The Good, the Bad, and the Fabulous
John Phipps: Did Biden's Decision to Block Keystone XL Pipeline Permit Cause Gas Prices to Rise?
Supply chain planning has never been more critical
DC Signal to Noise: Inflation's Slice of Thanksgiving Pie
E.U. seeks to block import of commodities that drive deforestation
Fewer shipping issues this year? (due to people shopping early, 1:15 mark)
Rising costs for Thanksgiving meal (0:05 mark) (5% increase for Americans)
Extreme Floods In Pacific Northwest Send Farmers Into Crisis
After a Year of Protests, Modi Finally Caves in to Farmers’ Demands
The Indigenous Origins of Regenerative Agriculture
Brazil’s Amazon beef plan will ‘legalize deforestation’ say critics
47 roosters and hens found in vehicle by US Customs (0:40 mark)
Making Air Travel More Sustainable with Soy-Fuel Innovations
Finance:
Foresight eyes entry into food and ag
RWDC Industries raises US$95.1 million in series B2 funding
Agrology Closes Capital Raised via Harvest Returns Platform
Tiamat Sciences cooking up plant-based proteins for cheaper production of cellular meat
Impossible Foods completes $500M funding round
$10B Bezos Earth Fund earmarks $2B for land restoration and food production efforts
Bengaluru based agritech platform Fasal raises $4 million (congrats to the Yield Lab Asia Pacific team, Fasal is a portfolio company)
Packhorse appoints ESG head to lead on carbon sequestration
Juicy Marbles gets $4.5M to sizzle up plant-based steaks
Theme of the Agtech Week: Abundance
Thanksgiving week is a time I look forward to: catch up with friends, family, enjoy delicious food and to recharge for the stretch run of the year. Thanksgiving is synonymous with giving thanks and showing gratitude; I want to focus on another aspect of the Thanksgiving week: abundance. Because of our current food and ag value chains, not without its faults and inefficiencies, we can enjoy an abundance of food. I want to focus on the abundance of opportunity that exists for innovation and technology in food and ag. From supply chain, to the global protein demand, and the need for sustainable agro inputs, there are plenty of problems to solve, and more importantly, plenty of room for innovators to come to the table. Too often I read about that it has to be ‘or’ for innovation; it’s either animal protein or no animal protein, it’s either ‘modern sustainable’ farming (e.g. indoor/CEA) or conventional farming, and so on.
I posit that it has to be ‘and’ (an abundance mindset) in agrifood innovation because an abundance mindset invites new innovators, new ideas and new approaches to the table. To view it through the lens of abundance sees the food and ag landscape as having plenty of problems to solve, with plenty of room for innovation and more importantly, to innovators, plenty of capital to support. Rather than create adversaries, the alt protein vs. the real protein, indoor/CEA vs. outdoor conventional farming, lets view through an abundance lens, an ‘and’ rather than ‘or’ approach. Big problems require big solutions, solutions that can come from anywhere.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving week!
BD
Brandon Day is the Chief Operating Officer of the Yield Lab Institute, the think-tank, non-profit arm of The Yield Lab global network of venture capital funds and accelerator programs.