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.
Giant raise for Halter, laser weeding and alt fat litigation latest, why Arkeon called it quits, bio-based vitamin A, and next-gen biotics
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It's been an action-packed week in agrifoodtech, with a giant raise from New Zealand-based livestock management startup Halter, two high profile legal disputes spanning laser weeding and novel fats generating lively debate on social media, and new data on ag biologicals from the Salinas Biologicals Summit. Elsewhere, Shiru invited brands to harness its AI-powered protein discovery platform to ride the GLP-1 wave, Arkeon's CEO revealed why the founders threw in the towel, Koppie emerged from stealth in the alt-coffee space, and Capra Biosciences explained why bio-based vitamin A could give its petrochemical-based counterpart a run for its money. Finally, the field is littered with the corpses of startups that have tried—and failed—to make a buck out of microalgae. So what makes Arborea different? We caught up with founder Julian Melchiorri to find out. Have a great weekend! Louisa, Elaine, Jenn, and Samuele ❤️ AgFunder and agrifoodtech? The waitlist for AgFunder's Fund V opens soon A federal court has granted Carbon Robotics a motion for a preliminary injunction against L&A, which in essence bans the latter from manufacturing, using, or selling its laser weeders in the US until the case is resolved. Jennifer Marston "On the pharma side, the GLP-1 space is super crowded, but most of the molecules being explored are not natural," says Dr. Jasmin Hume: "In food, there really aren't many companies addressing this strategically." Elaine Watson Arkeon CEO delivers postmortem on ‘protein from air’ startup: ‘We just simply ran out of time’ Founded in 2021, Arkeon uses gas fermentation for protein production. Four years later, it filed for insolvency. So what went wrong? Elaine Watson Koppie is in discussions with European roasters and retailers with plans to launch at commercial scale in Q1, 2026. Elaine Watson The field is littered with the corpses of startups that have tried—and failed—to make a buck out of microalgae. So what makes Arborea different? Elaine Watson Halter to beef up US expansion following $100m raise led by BOND, $1bn valuation New Zealand-based livestock management startup Halter is now valued at $1 billion following the Series D fundraise. Jennifer Marston The ag biologicals industry has made "steady progress" over the last year, says Invasive Species Corporation founder Dr. Pam Marrone. Jennifer Marston Plaintiff OWN Your Hunger alleges it “breached binding delivery commitments to major retail customers due to EPG unavailability, causing irreparable reputational harm." Elaine Watson The Week in AgriFoodTech: Climatiq raises $11.7m, Doktar bags $8.7m, Planetary acquires Libre Foods Plus: PepsiCo teams up with NotCo and Norrsken Foundation commits $350 million to back ventures using AI to solve challenges in climate, health, food, education and society. Samuele Gabbio Capra Biosciences has developed a novel method of producing retinol using engineered microbes fed on industrial side streams in novel bioreactors that it claims could compete with petrochemical-based production. Elaine Watson "Our model is more like a pharma model, where we start with a health indication, try to understand a mechanism, and then develop biotics," says CEO Todd Beckman. By Elaine Watson From super-heated bioreactors to rapid onsite GMO tests: Meet the AgriNovus Velocity winners NanoBio Designs, Integrated Dynamics, and NutriPop scoop the top prizes in an innovation accelerator run by AgriNovus Indiana. Sponsored post The quiet trends reshaping ag: a field guide for builders, backers, and business leaders New trends in ag innovation quietly reroute where capital flows, adoption sticks, exits emerge, and market power gets built. By guest contributor Mark Brooks Bayer responds to new glyphosate study: 'It is clear this study has serious methodological flaws' A group of EU and US scientists claims that low doses of the weed killer glyphosate "cause multiple types of cancer in rats." Jennifer Marston Clever Carnivore’s pragmatic path to cultivated meat profitability, starting with $0.07/liter media "We could have a saleable product that is also profitable in 18 months," claims Clever Carnivore CSO Dr. Paul Burridge. Elaine Watson What is holding back the bioeconomy? In conversation with Boston Bioprocess CEO Dr. Michael Tai A disconnect between upstream and downstream work is holding back progress in biomanufacturing, claims the CEO of Boston Bioprocess. Elaine Watson It's time to RIP AgriFoodTech - it was always an unholy alliance Why distribution is not the ‘secret sauce’ for agtech startups Startup Daily The trend behind carbon insetting Trailhead Capital RFK Jr. is taking an axe to America's dietary guidelines The Atlantic What sustainable food needs to learn from alcohol-free beer’s rise Unstuck The end of corporate venture capital (as we know it) - Global Venturing We need Donnas, not Amelia Bedelias Software is feeding the World House Republicans want the FDA—not states—to regulate food dyes Civil Eats According to a recent clinical trial, Brightseed’s Bio Gut Core may help support gut barrier integrity Featuring Brightseed! Nutritional Outlook When nature meets Nordic design: MycoWorks’ Reishi transforms Danish craftsmanship Featuring MycoWorks! Yanko Design 2025 Developing Markets AgriFoodTech Investment Report 2025 Global AgriFoodTech Investment Report 2024 Asia Pacific AgriFoodTech Investment Report 2024 Africa AgriFoodTech Investment Report 10 years in agrifoodtech: our exclusive 83-page e-zine! 2024 India AgriFoodTech Investment Report Climate Capital: Financing Adaptation Pathways for Smallholder Farmers Working student, economic impact of regenerative ag Klim (Berlin, Germany) Retailo Technologies (Islamabad, Pakistan) Phage production, QC technician Phagos (Suresnes, France) Maintenance technician, nightshift MycoWorks (Union, South Carolina, USA) MycoWorks (Union, South Carolina, USA) Territory sales rep, agriculture Kula Bio (California, Arizona, USA) GreenLight Biosciences (Rochester, New York, USA) Intelligent Growth Solutions (Edinburgh, Scotland) ♥️ 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 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...