AgFunderNews reports on the evolution of the global food and agriculture system. By going beyond the headlines, we analyze the people, companies and technologies aiming to improve human and planetary health. Publishing daily, our team of award-winning journalists delivers deeper insight on the growing foodtech, agtech and climate tech industries. A multimedia publication, AgFunderNews is a division of AgFunder, one of the world’s most active agrifoodtech venture capital firms.
Chemical ag's cracks, Saku's biomanufacturing breakthrough, Oishii’s $150m raise, a novel approach to enteric methane, next gen RNAi biopesticides, AI-powered elevator scheduling
Express interest in investing in Fund V. AgFunder is a top 100 VC, according to TIME and Statista. Is your business ready for AI analytics? Find out more here.
This week: From MAHA’s glyphosate tug-of-war with Trump to patent cliffs to rising fertilizer costs, the cracks in the use of traditional crop inputs are starting to resemble fault lines, says Jenn. And mainstream investors are now paying attention, notably Y Combinator CEO Gary Tan. Elsewhere, could novel lipid-based tech unlock a new approach to livestock methane reduction that could also meaningfully boost milk yields? Elaine spoke to Netherlands-based Triple Bio. Plus:
And finally… Armed with a fresh $150m, Oishii has “crossed the chasm” of unit economics in vertical farming, says CEO Hiroki Koga. Have a fantastic week! Louisa, Jenn, and Elaine The cracks in chemical farming are getting hard to ignore. These startups are providing alternatives The cracks in the use of traditional crop inputs are starting to resemble fault lines. Jennifer Marston Triple Bio aims to move from in-vitro tests into live-animal studies later this year. Elaine Watson URUS acquires AgriWebb to make livestock tech ‘resemble other critical infrastructure systems’ The two companies hope to make livestock tech 'resemble other critical infrastructure systems' that prioritize data. Jennifer Marston Renaissance Bioscience unveils yeast-derived VLP platform for next-gen RNAi biopesticides Virus like particles could pave the way for next-gen RNAi biopesticides with broader applications and lower costs, claims the firm. Elaine Watson Regenerative is a bridge to organic production, not a substitute for it, says Friends of the Earth Not all regen ag certification programs are consistent on the pesticides they prohibit. Jennifer Marston GrainFlow targets grain elevator gridlock with AI scheduling system At many grain elevators, trucks simply arrive and line up, says Bryan Wattie. “There is no appointment system and no slot reservation." Elaine Watson Could ‘chickpea-sized’ biosensors make biomanufacturing more cost competitive? Wireless free-floating biosensors could help biomanufacturing firms optimize fermentation and save money, says Capra Biosciences. Elaine Watson AI food leaders see sweeping disruptions—at different speeds Leaders in food-system applications of AI say the past year has brought whiplash-inducing transformations across the value chain, with plenty still to come. They just disagree somewhat about the pace. Richard Bellis On the heels of fresh funding, Oishii has ‘crossed the chasm’ of unit economics in vertical farming "We were able to stay disciplined and focused on proving out the operation and unit economics before chasing revenue,” says the CEO. Jennifer Marston Saku Biosciences bets on tiny “PicoShells” to solve a big biomanufacturing problem Could tiny hollow balls dramatically speed up and improve the strain optimization process? Elaine Watson AgriFood Signals: More Microsoft carbon deals, a $200m greenhouse in Mexico, rubber from dandelions Plus: Steakholder Foods plans US launch. Jennifer Marston Farming knowledge is dying but AI can save it AI doesn’t solve agriculture, but it may be the only path to preserving the intelligence that makes it work. By guest contributor Shail Khiyara Ruby Bio aims to launch “world first” fermentation-derived clean label emulsifiers in 2027 “To our knowledge, we are the only fermentation derived emulsifier portfolio platform in the world,” says CTO Pavan Kambam. Elaine Watson What’s next for carbon markets? Maturity signals or ‘medieval indulgences’ On the heels of Microsoft's decision to pause carbon removal purchases, the industry weighs in on the sector's future. Jennifer Marston US Senate fertilizer hearing: Farmers ‘can’t take much more’ as prices surge Farmers are “being squeezed by prices they cannot control on inputs they cannot do without," said witnesses. Elaine Watson
Kula Bio launches Kula-N Advanced and Kula-Next Advanced, simplifying portfolio with high efficiency liquid formulation - Featuring Kula Bio! Weekly Voice
What the Vertical Harvest pile-on reveals about CEA in the trough Strait of Hormuz conflict threatens global food prices as FAO warns time is running out FAO Why most alt protein post mortems are useless Substack Consumer demand drives whey protein shortage, price increases New Hope Network To slop or not? (And the launch of Square Roots’ AI usage policy). After the hype, Europe’s foodtech sector is rebuilding around fundamentals Tech.eu The American rebellion against AI Is gaining steam The Wall Street Journal
NEW! 2026 Global AgriFoodTech Investment Report 2025 Developing Markets AgriFoodTech Investment Report 2025 Global AgriFoodTech Investment Report 10 years in agrifoodtech: an 83-page e-zine Climate Capital: Financing Adaptation Pathways for Smallholder Farmers Customer success manager, South Africa Aerobotics (Nelspruit/hybrid) Junior robotics implementation analyst Solinftec (Araçatuba, São Paulo state, Brazil) Varaha (Andhra Pradesh, Visakhapatnam, India) Eratani (Jakarta, Indonesia) Senior certification specialist Klim (Berlin, Germany) Faeth Therapeutics (remote/US) Atinary Technologies (Épalinges, Switzerland) ♥️ our newsletter? Forward to a friend or subscribe here |
AgFunderNews
AgFunderNews reports on the evolution of the global food and agriculture system. By going beyond the headlines, we analyze the people, companies and technologies aiming to improve human and planetary health. Publishing daily, our team of award-winning journalists delivers deeper insight on the growing foodtech, agtech and climate tech industries. A multimedia publication, AgFunderNews is a division of AgFunder, one of the world’s most active agrifoodtech venture capital firms.
Express interest in investing in Fund V. AgFunder is a top 100 VC, according to TIME and Statista. Is your business ready for AI analytics? Find out more here. Two years after emerging from bankruptcy, biomanufacturing specialist Amyris is not yet profitable, but is a “drastically different company," says CEO Kathy Fortmann. Elsewhere, California-based Windfall Bio—a startup with tech to convert waste methane from farms and landfill sites into organic fertilizer—has ceased operations and is...
Express interest in investing in Fund V. AgFunder is a top 100 VC, according to TIME and Statista. Is your business ready for AI analytics? Find out more here. This week: S2G Investments raised a $1bn growth-stage fund and vertical farming company Oishii announced the first close of its $150m Series C round. Elsewhere, Ruby Bio is riding the MAHA wave with an industry first: a suite of clean-label emulsifiers derived from fermentation, with unit economics that can compete at scale with a...
Express interest in investing in Fund V. AgFunder is a top 100 VC, according to TIME and Statista. Is your business ready for AI analytics? Find out more here. This week: S2G Investments raised a $1bn growth-stage fund and vertical farming company Oishii announced the first close of its $150m Series C round. Elsewhere, Ruby Bio is riding the MAHA wave with an industry first: a suite of clean-label emulsifiers derived from fermentation, with unit economics that can compete at scale with a...