Tom Collier’s Post

Molecular farming uses plants to produce valuable proteins and compounds, transforming how we source ingredients for food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. This cutting-edge technology reduces reliance on animal agriculture and minimizes environmental impact. At SparkFood, we support companies pioneering molecular farming to build sustainable supply chains and meet growing demand for ethical products. Together, we’re shaping the future of innovation and sustainability.

🚜 Are bioinputs the solution to make agriculture more sustainable? While agrifood accounts for a quarter of global emissions, synthetic fertilisers alone represent 2.1% of these emissions beyond their other environmental impacts. Their cost increased alongside energy prices. This explains the appetite for alternatives, and why in our hype curve, we observe a surge of appetite for bioinputs. We can identify at two main categories of bioinputs: 1️⃣ Alternatives to nitrogen-based fertilisers (itself produced from natural gas or coal), with again multiple categories of players, notably: => Biostimulants, such as Aphea.Bio (using bacteria to reduce the amount of nitrogen required) => Biofertilisers, such as Pivot Bio (using microbes to naturally fix atmospheric nitrogen). 2️⃣ Biopesticides are biological agents (notably microbes) used to used to control pests to replace broad-spectrum chemical pesticides (for example: BioConsortia, Inc., which develops multiples products). 👍 Bioinputs bring multiple benefits: - Reduced environmental impact - Improved soil health 👎 However, switching to bioinputs comes with its challenges: - Scale - Cost - Farmers awareness - Efficiency limits We are spending more and more time on this topic with clients to help them understand the ecosystem of innovation, scout partners and identify the best path of action. They are getting more and more concerned by their scope 3 emissions (basically everything beyond manufacturing and transport, which in food mostly means agriculture inputs), they need to be able to present more sustainable solutions to the farmers they are partnering with. 👉 More insights and examples of Bioinputs startups here: https://lnkd.in/ezyrb6X9 #agtech #foodTech #startups

🌱Exciting Predictions for Food and Agtech in 2025🌱 As we look ahead to accomplish the first quarter of the century, the food and agtech sectors are poised for significant changes driven by climate instability, food price inflation, and political challenges. Here are five key trends shaping the future: 1. Farmland and Carbon Management: Regenerative farming and soil management will be pivotal in reducing agriculture's carbon footprint. Data-driven insights will support these practices, much like how LAYERS, uses AI to optimize crop yield and protein content predictions. 2.Alternative Proteins: Despite recent setbacks, alternative proteins will gain renewed interest, particularly in deep-tech products and precision fermentation. LAYERS helps farmers maximize their yield potential, ensuring sustainable practices align with these new protein sources. 3. Carbon Insetting: With new carbon disclosure laws, companies will focus on reducing carbon within their supply chains. This shift will drive innovation in methane reduction, carbon capture, and soil health improvement. LAYERS' precise forecasting aids in sustainable resource management, aligning with these goals. 4. Tech in 'Boring' Industries: Automation and technological advancements will revolutionise labor, agriculture, health, and food delivery. LAYERS exemplifies this by providing accurate crop yield forecasts, optimizing farming practices and enhancing productivity. 5. Investment Trends: Venture capital funding will be cautious, focusing on fundamentals and realistic valuations. Quality companies with strong unit economics will attract investment. LAYERS continues to be a leader in agtech, offering reliable solutions that meet these investment criteria. At HEMAV, we're excited to be at the forefront of these transformative trends, leveraging LAYERS to support sustainable and efficient farming practices. Contact today for a free demo! 🌍🚜🌾 #Agtech #FoodTech #Sustainability #Innovation #LAYERS #CropYieldForecasting #RegenerativeAgriculture #AlternativeProteins #CarbonManagement #InvestmentTrends

🌟Announcement - Launch of 10 BioDirect All-Island Bioeconomy Challenges 🌟 Circular Bioeconomy Cluster is delighted to announce the launch of 10 BioDirect All-Island Bioeconomy Innovation Challenges from the Agriculture, Construction, Packaging and Textile sectors. 🔷Major companies, alliances and representative organisations including Kingspan Group Dawn Meats ABP Food Group High Performance Building Alliance Arcology System Saint Vincent De Paul Society Donegal Yarns Ltd, @Fergusons Irish Linen, Ulster Farmers Union and Atim Cluster have defined challenge areas where they are seeking solutions to scale their sustainability and circular activity. 💡We are seeking solution providers with ideas, technologies, products that will solve these challenges and who are open to collaborative partnerships with challenge owners. The challenges are open to the innovation community to solve including start-ups, SMEs, researchers and large companies. ➡️Check out the website for more information: www.cbcsw.ie/biodirect Supported by InterTradeIreland Synergy Programme, the BioDirect initiative is led by Circular Bioeconomy Cluster who have joined forces with atim cluster Ulster University AgriTech Ireland Queen's University Belfast to accelerate upmarket uptake of bio-based products across sectors on an All-island basis. Thank you to our partners for your support with this project. Circular Bioeconomy Research Group (CIRCBIO) Munster Technological University IKC3 - Ireland's Knowledge Centre for Carbon, Climate and Community Action Stephen Barry-Hannon Catriona Power FRSA Helena McMahon Damien McConville Joanne McEvoy Patrick Barrett

Amazing development by the Circular Bioeconomy Cluster & partners using an #innovative #demand #driven #challenge #based #approach supporting the development of circular biobased innovation & solutions aiding the development of the #irishbioeconomy

Great to see this news article highlighting the exciting future of agtech! It's encouraging to see the industry recognizing the importance of innovation and adaptation. The post's emphasis on the contribution of ICL Group to the agtech industry, and citing our earlier article stating the necessity of innovation in this era, highlights the essence of our work. I'm confident that by continuing to push the boundaries of innovation, we can build a more sustainable and efficient agricultural sector https://lnkd.in/d34TzSHM #iclimpact #agtech #sustainability

🚀 It's that time of the month! 🚀 We're thrilled to announce the update of the B-Resilient skills hub, packed with new insights and collaborations! 🌱 🐟 Ever wondered how the by-products of salmon processing can be recycled? Meet Saumup, the innovative project born from collaboration between Upcyclink and Saumextra - Nautilus Collection, #BResilient laureate in the Innovation category. 🏆 🔍 Dive into Model2Bio, a European Funded Project that developed a predictive model to identify and reuse organic waste streams, paving the way for smarter waste management strategies. 📊 📝 Plus, explore their comprehensive white paper on Food and Drink Waste Management, with collaborations from B-Resilient and other EU Funded projects, shedding light on the vast potential of agri-food industry by-products. 📑 🌟 And don't miss Flanders' FOOD’ strategic agenda, outlining efforts to maximise the use of by-products in the Flemish agri-food industry, shaped by insights from industry leaders. 🌍 Ready to explore the future of sustainability? Check out the skills hub here 👉 https://lnkd.in/dGu9Zzc2 European Commission | European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) | European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP) | European Clusters Alliance #BResilient #Innovation #OpenCall #LumpSum #SMEs #Biomass #Eurocluster #lastcall #bioeconomy

𝐑𝐞𝐆𝐞𝐧 𝐕𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘝𝘊 𝘚𝘯𝘢𝘱𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘊𝘓𝘐𝘔𝘈𝘍𝘐𝘟 ReGen Ventures invests in regenerative technology companies created by wildly ambitious teams who want to radically transform our world for the better. Country: Byron Bay, Australia Website: https://www.regen.vc/ 𝐂𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐡 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐨: (from web site & public sources) Aigen - AI Generated Agriculture Arch - Arch’s software platform makes it easy for consumers, installers, and vendors to decarbonize homes with new technologies. Arkeon - GMO-free protein platform that converts C02 into functional proteins - essentially a cattle ranch in a bioreactor. Asterix Foods - building a protein production platform using plant-cell culture techniques. Banyu Carbon - Capturing carbon with light BurnBot, Inc. - Fuel destroying robot to prevent mega wildfires Circe - Turning Co2 into fats, foods and flavours Clean Crop Technologies, Inc. - Eliminating food waste using electricity FACE PLANT - Revolutionising fast food worldwide Future - The rewards card for the climate generation. meati™ - Meat powered by myceliums made from mushrooms PACT - Luxury leather. Without cows or plastics Pachama - Digitising nature-based carbon markets Rhizocore Technologies - Restoring forests with fungal networks Seqana - X-ray vision to measure soil carbon from space == 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘝𝘊 𝘚𝘯𝘢𝘱𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘺 𝘊𝘓𝘐𝘔𝘈𝘍𝘐𝘟 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘝𝘊𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘧 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. Hope you found this snapshot useful. Alexandra Carr | Rose Marcario | Tom McQuillen | Parker Hughes | Will Coleman

A modest proposal to address the conundrum of defining Regenerative Ag As we all know, interest in regen ag is rising exponentially, spurred on by climate change, environmental degradation, concern for healthier and more nutritious food as well as many other serious concerns. Yet as my posts as well as many others have been saying, realization of the true potential of Regenerative Agriculture to benefiit the Planet depends partly on achieving scale. That in turn requires not only advances in science, validation of practices, and demonstration of impacts, but also much greater uptake by practitioners on the farm or ranch, as well as demand generation by many more market-making receivers and compliance all along the supply chains to distant markets. Again as I have posited recently, and as is being energetically discussed in a thread here on Linked In that seems to be taking off, experience over the lst 25 years or more in the globalization of agricultural trade demonstrates the importance of rules that ensure quality and consistency of supply for compliant products sourced at arms-length. They must then be shipped via complex,multi-stage supply chains, with traceability and sometimes identity preservation built in. That in turn requires agreement on definition, product or process requirements, as well as certification and above all trust. So in the absence of consensus around Regen Ag, what can be done? Especially when everyone agrees that adoption is an unending journey in search of continuous improvement and that context matters greatly. I remember that the organics settled on a period of transition. Maybe the same is needed here. Would third-party certification that the supplier has embarked on the RA journey, coupled with verifiable milestones but also necessary flexibility provide enough certainty of virtue to engender confidence among interested receivers and end-users?

For our upcoming RootCamp batch, we received over 300 applications from 75 countries. 🌍 Several #startups caught our eye, each bringing transformative #agtech solutions to the table. 🌱 These startups are bringing innovations in areas like #sustainable soil health, using biochar and biodegradable capsules to improve nutrient delivery and reduce pollution. We’re also seeing exciting advances in #protein alternatives and #molecular #farming, where organic waste is repurposed, or specialized proteins are derived from plants for clean-label ingredients. Additionally, smart #agriculture and data-driven farming are advancing rapidly, with satellite-based soil monitoring and intelligent sprayers that reduce chemical use, all contributing to a more sustainable agricultural future. Here are 15 #startups you need to know in 2024: ⏬ Biostra, Kyomei, Natupla: Bio-based polymers and plastic, NovFeed, Point2Hectare, Symbiagro, uFraction8, Varaha, EcoGrow Naturals, GreenoSoil AG, Krauts & Sprouts, NUCAPS, SiembraCo, Spray Logics, and ZeoFertil. 🔗 Visit our blog to learn more about them. Find the link in the comments.