AgFunderNews reports on the evolution of the global food and agriculture system. By going beyond the headlines, we analyse the people, companies and technologies aiming to improve human and planetary health. Publishing daily news, 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 Inc, one of the world’s most active agrifoodtech venture capital firms.
Crunch time for cultivated meat, John Deere on 10 years in agtech, Solar Foods bags $8.8m for protein from air
Can cultivated meat transition from a loss-making novelty served at a handful of high-end restaurants to a commercially viable alternative to animal ag? This week, Elaine Watson spoke with a raft of startups and investors in the space, while Jenn Marston caught up with the VP of automation at John Deere to talk about the last 10 years in agtech.
It's also been a big week for Entobel, which opened Asia's largest insect protein plant, and Solar Foods, which bagged $8.8m to grow protein from microbes that feed on elements from the air.
Have a great weekend, and if you're in the US, happy Thanksgiving! Louisa, Elaine, and Jenn
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Industry and funding news
Crunch time for cultivated meat: ‘Probably 70-90% of players will fail in the next year’
On paper, cultivated meat might seem like a no-brainer. In practice, however, there’s no playbook for biomanufacturing meat at scale... By Elaine Watson
Mizuho Securities analyst on Beyond Meat: ‘They’re just sort of stuck’
Is Beyond Meat going to run out of money? What happens next? By Elaine Watson
Protein from air: Solar Foods raises $8.8m series B as it gears up to open new plant
Solar Foods uses carbon dioxide and hydrogen instead of sugars to feed its bacteria... By Elaine Watson
Entobel opens largest insect protein production facility in Asia, targets aquaculture
The new site is "the world’s most CAPEX-efficient BSF production facility," claims the firm... By Elaine Watson
Plus, sugar refiner Nordzucker will invest more than $100m into plant-based proteins... By Jennifer Marston
Interviews, opinions and analysis
By Jennifer Marston
By Elaine Watson
Investment in data integration is crucial for companies in the agricultural supply chain
By guest contributor Peter Leppan
In case you missed it
Motif FoodWorks CEO departs as firm ‘refocuses priorities’ and creates ‘leaner organizational structure’ Exclusive!
By Elaine Watson
Letter on the way to the desert via MEASA
By Louisa Burwood-Taylor
By Jennifer Marston
🎥 What makes a great pitch? What raises alarm bells? Agrifoodtech investors weigh in…
By Elaine Watson
What we're reading
Insiders say Eat Just is in big financial trouble
WIRED
Plant-based dairy Miyoko's Creamery is raising funds, preparing for potential sale
Bloomberg
Q&A with CEO of Verdant Robotics, Gabe Sibley AgFunder portfolio co!
Successful Farming
Can food and agriculture companies raise their game?
Bain & Co
World facing ‘hellish’ 3C of climate heating, UN warns before Cop28
The Guardian
More Americans on Ozempic means smaller plates at Thanksgiving
Bloomberg
AgFunder research
2023 Asia-Pacific AgriFoodTech Investment Report New!
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2023 Africa AgriFoodTech Investment Report
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2023 Latam AgriFoodTech Investment Report
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2023 India AgriFoodTech Investment Report
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2023 Global AgriFoodTech Investment Report
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AgFunderNews
AgFunderNews reports on the evolution of the global food and agriculture system. By going beyond the headlines, we analyse the people, companies and technologies aiming to improve human and planetary health. Publishing daily news, 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 Inc, one of the world’s most active agrifoodtech venture capital firms.
It's been another big week for ag robotics, with fresh funds for autonomous mushroom harvester 4AG Robotics and TRIC Robotics, which has a fleet of 'bots armed with UV-C light and bug vacuums roaming California's strawberry fields. On a more depressing note, UK-based vertical farmer Vertical Future was put up for sale on an insolvency marketplace, while Belgian startup FlyBlast, which engineers black soldier flies to produce high-value proteins, filed for bankruptcy. Meanwhile, with new data...
The big news this week? Two high-profile alt protein startups have called it quits, with Planetarians blaming a "mismatch between the capital intensity required to scale breakthrough manufacturing innovation and the current investor appetite for foodtech" and NovoNutrients blaming the "shifting investment climate.” Both hope their tech finds a new home, however. Planetarians founder Aleh Manchuliantsau insists that "We’re specifically seeking acquirers who will actively utilize and develop...
Everyone has a pet theory about what's gone wrong for alt meat. It's too processed, too expensive, too different from meat... or not different enough. But we may be missing the elephant in the room, claims ex-TiNDLE exec Andre Menezes. “The fundamental issue is that there is no real underlying consumer demand to shift away from meat. If the price is right and consumers like the product, they don’t care if they are destroying the Earth.” So what does this mean for TiNDLE and the broader alt...