Farm2050 looks to help agricultural technology startup

Dec 16, 2014

Collective includes companies headed by Google Chairman Eric Schmidt

By Diego Flammini, Farms.com

Startups dedicated to agricultural technology (agtech) who need a financial boost in hopes their dreams become a reality can apply for an investment partnership with some heavy hitters in the agtech world.

Innovation Endeavours and Flextronics’ Lab IX, founded by Google Chairman Eric Schmidt, AGCO, DuPont, and others, make up Farm2050, an initiative focusing on robotics and data science to confront global food security and waste.

"(A hundred) years ago, we saw the Haber-Bosch process enable fertilizer development," said Innovation Endeavors Managing Partner Dror Berman, in a statement. "50 years ago, we saw the refrigerated truck facilitate the long-distance transport of perishables. And today, we're seeing the emergence of robotics and machine learning applied to agricultural practices.”

The obstacles the entrepreneurs face is intense. Berman estimates needing to feed more than 10 billion people by 2050. That’ll require a nearly 70% increase in food production.

“This is a tall order but also the type of challenge that technologists should be working to solve,” he said.

Farm2050 isn’t the only investment group to look at infusing the agricultural business sector.

In November, Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers invested in Farmers Edge out of Winnipeg, Manitoba, who specialize in precision agriculture.

"They uniquely integrate real-time satellite imagery and in-field telematics to maximize yield and minimize environmental footprint," said Kleiner Perkins' Brook Porter, in a statement. "Farmer's Edge is leading the current disruption around how crops are grown, and ultimately how crops are valued as traceability becomes an increasingly important factor in the food supply chain."

Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.