AgTech

Advances in AgTech are attracting investors.

highway 33 agtech Advances in AgTech are attracting stronger and stronger investor interest – with total capital funding reaching $2.7 billion invested across 289 venture financing rounds last year. Innovations in production efficiencies, quality and sustainability of existing farmlands attracted the majority of funding, however the fastest-growing segment in 2019 was indoor agriculture. Investment in this segment almost doubled since 2018, reaching a new high of $541 million in 2019.

Indoor Agriculture is a growing field.

Indoor farming has become the hotbed of AgTech innovation due to a combination of factors – precision agriculture, architecture, and advancements in energy- and resource-efficiency. These innovations make growing, and consuming, food more aligned with the changing expectations of today’s consumer.

Expectations are for safe, high-quality foods available from local growers; for more quality produce using less space with fewer demands on diminishing resources.

In addressing these consumer demands, studies by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) found that indoor farming yields benefits in energy use, virtually eliminates the need for pesticides and generates 80 percent less waste. It also requires less space than outdoor cultivation, which can free up land for biodiversity.

The WWF found that precision indoor water systems use 1 liter of water to produce a kilogram of lettuce; for field-grown lettuce, that figure is 150 liters. As for energy innovation, key drivers will be advancements in HVAC, fertigation and the channeling of sunlight directly to plants indoors through fiber optic lighting.

World Wildlife Fund POV on Indoor Ag:

The WWF found that precision indoor water systems use 1 liter of water to produce a kilogram of lettuce; for field-grown lettuce, that figure is 150 liters. As for energy innovation, key drivers will be advancements in HVAC, fertigation and the channeling of sunlight directly to plants indoors through fiber optic lighting.