Agtech Action | Week of 12.30.23 - 01.05.24
Agtech Action is a weekly newsletter highlighting and commenting on current events in the world of agtech
El Niño may play a role in 2024, new animal welfare standards take effect in CA, and Missouri enacts new restrictions on foreign owned ag land. Chickentarian, German farmers plan a big protest and TX rancher’s property right case goes to the Supreme Court.
It’s a new year, another 365 days for agtech to make its mark. Every startup reviews its strategy, plan for the year and sets objectives. But its important to set a healthy level of expectations. Setting expectations is a good exercise for agtech because it moves things forward while setting realistic goals. We’ll explore what expectations are in this week’s newsletter.
Food and the World:
Year in Produce 2023: Tomato suspension agreement draws critics, supporters
With new year, animal welfare standards take effect in California and the United States
January May Be Yield-Defining Month for South American Weather
Another lawsuit filed in salmonella outbreak in cantaloupes
IFPA cites 10 key impacts for 2023
Looking Ahead: Forecasting Food Waste Reduction Progress in 2024
Lower corn production costs in U.S. than in Brazil
Minnesota Lost More Than 50 Dairy Farms in November
Washington's apple crop rebounds, giving retailers promotion opportunities aplenty
Nearly 80M birds die in almost two years of bird flu
Agtech in the News:
Three Midwestern Farm Credit Associations Announce Collaboration
6 Concept Technologies to Watch In 2024 and Beyond
Farmland Partners Inc. Latest News: Changes in Board of Directors
Naïo Technologies Latest News: Becomes B-Corp Certified
Perfect Day founders step away as company finalizes ~$90m pre-Series E, installs interim CEO
8 Key Trends in the Phosphate Fertilizer Market
What’s next in the legal spat between ABEC and GOOD Meat (Eat Just) over unpaid bills?
Ohio Department of Agriculture Provides $12.6M Federal Grant
Ag Growth International Announces Innovative Financing Partnership
2024 AgTech Predictions: 5 Trends to Watch
Farmers Edge and LTIMindtree Launch Innovation Lab in Mumbai
EarthOptics’ Milestone in Soil Mapping and Measurement
Can A Scouting Technology Increase Farmer Trust?
Fun:
Boom or bubble? High Missouri farmland prices encourage investors, concern farmers
American Gothic: Farm Couple Nailed in Massive $9M Crop Insurance Fraud
3 Leadership Trends You Need to Adopt in 2024
How to make $25k per acre without a tractor
Helpful Resources:
Will the estate tax exemption boogeyman get you this time?
Kansas rancher implements drought mitigation plan to survive third year drought
Sharpen your marketing skills this new year
Fraud Alert: Don’t Fall Victim to These Common Schemes
2024: Vertical Snapshot: Semiconductor Scale-Ups
Self-care is mental health maintenance
Q4 2023: PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor First Look
USDA offers $3M in funding for climate-smart production
Interesting Reads:
German farmers planning a big protest against the government
The Key Ingredient to Success Most Founders Tragically Overlook
Hydrogen had a breakout year. Why are some VCs still skeptical?
The secret to getting people to eat more plant-based food (the secret: tell them what it is and what it isn’t and let them decide)
California’s water supply and flood infrastructure cannot adapt to climate volatility
Why generative AI orchestration startups are poised for growth in 2024
What Are Farm Animals Thinking?
If Not Vegan, or Vegetarian, How About Chickentarian?
Missouri Enacts New Restrictions on Foreign Agricultural Land Ownership Near Military Sites
Start-ups in Africa raised $2.9 billion in funding in 2023, a significant YoY drop
East Africa snatches the crown while Western Africa tumbles off the podium
Which Foreign Country Owns the Most Farmland in the U.S.? Hint: It's Not China
Texas Rancher’s Property Rights Case to be Heard by U.S. Supreme Court
Strawberry Case Study: What if Farmers Had to Pay for Water?
Finance:
2023 AgTech Venture Capital Investment and Exit Round Up
FIA and Weyerhaeuser swap $330M worth of forestry assets
What's in store for fundraising in 2024? 3 predictions
2024: US Venture Capital Outlook
Tattarang raises Australian Agricultural Company stake to 19.49%
2024: US Private Equity Outlook
Theme of the Agtech Week: Expectations
The new year brings a boost of energy, opportunity and another 365 days to get it right. We all want to improve upon the previous year, and given the tough year that agtech experienced in 2023, we want to make 2024 count. But agtech needs to set healthy expectations. What does that mean? Let’s discuss how agtech can move the ball down the field with thoughtful expectations.
Most organizations begin internal review process at the end of the year or the beginning of the following year. For transparency, our organization looks at a few things:
Mission statement
Vision statement
Strategic pillars and the activities within them.
Then as part of our annual review, we ask the following questions:
Does this Mission statement still hold true?
Does this Vision statement still hold true?
Are these Strategic pillars still valid? And are the activities we’ve executed in the past year still relevant for the organization?
In doing this exercise, we feel that it allows us to evaluate the past (previous year), present and the future (remainder of the new year). Furthermore, this exercise allows us to set expectations, and metrics, for the following year by asking more in-depth questions like:
Which strategic pillars do we want to focus on in 2024?
Which activities do we want to orient resources towards in 2024?
What are reasonable expectations to set and execute on in 2024 (e.g. # of new activities, # of new clients or partners, etc.)
This internal review takes time, in our case months, but it is enormously valuable for the organization. Setting expectations, based on measured performance, and based on what can be reasonably executed on going forward is how to give yourself a great shot at succeeding. Here’s to a successful 2024!
Thanks for reading and Happy New Year.
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.