Recent Developments in Agricultural Innovation and Funding

💰 Fundraise Highlights: Innovative agricultural sectors are experiencing significant funding events, with land-based salmon farming company First Water and insect farming venture nextProtein leading the charge. Companies like Ceres and Source.ag are also making headlines with their fundraising efforts.

🍗 Spotlight on Cultivated Meat: In a progressive move for cultivated meat, Britain’s Hoxton Farms has sought regulatory approval in Singapore for its cultivated fat product. Additionally, Believer Meats has secured USDA approval for its cultivated chicken offering.

🍫 Plus: In exciting industry news, Pow.Bio is scaling its biomanufacturing processes, while the healthy fast-food chain Leon has reclaimed ownership. Meanwhile, the world’s largest chocolate producer is exploring cocoa-free alternatives, signaling a shift in ingredient sourcing.

Funding News

🇺🇸 The EVERY Co has successfully raised $55 million to enhance its production of egg proteins via fermentation, marking a significant milestone from ‘promise to proof’ (AgFunderNews).

🇮🇸 Iceland’s First Water has raised €24 million to expand its operations in land-based salmon farming in Þorlákshöfn (Silicon Canals).

🇹🇳 NextProtein has acquired $20.7 million in Series B funding to boost insect protein production in Tunisia (Launch Base Africa).

🇳🇱 Source.ag secured $17.5 million to further develop AI applications for controlled environment agriculture (Tech.eu).

🇦🇺 Uluu raised AU$16 million for the innovation of a seaweed-based alternative to plastic (Vegconomist).

🇺🇸 Ceres has achieved $13 million in funding, along with a new board member, John Tincoff (Pulse 2.0).

🇦🇺 Nbryo in Queensland raised $10 million in seed funding to focus on breeding improved beef (Startup Daily).

🇺🇸 Appetronix has acquired $6 million to advance its robotic kitchen technology, stating that quick service will increasingly automate (AgFunderNews).

🇵🇱 Holi from Warsaw has secured €3 million to enhance its digital treatment platform aimed at obesity (EU Startups).

🇺🇸 HudsonAlpha received $2 million for its research focused on crop and forest development (Axios).

🇺🇸 Atlantic Fish Co. secured $1.2 million in a seed round to tap into the $400 billion seafood market (Atlantic Fish Co.).

🇦🇷 ReForest Latam has raised $1 million in a pre-seed funding round (Latam List).

M&A, IPOs & Partnerships

🇺🇸 The founder of Miyoko’s is taking steps to buy back the brand from liquidators (AgFunderNews).

🇺🇸 🇩🇪 🇫🇷 Pow.Bio, in collaboration with Bühler and ATV Technologies, is scaling up its continuous biomanufacturing platform to 3,000 liters (Vegconomist).

🇨🇭 🇺🇸 Barry Callebaut has formed a partnership with Planet A Foods to meet the rising demand for sustainable chocolate alternatives (FoodBev Media).

🇨🇭 🇩🇪 Maiko Van der Meer has been appointed CEO at Protix, following Aurora Bekkevold’s transition to ScaleAQ Software (Seafood Source).

Funds, Grants & Accelerators

🇨🇱 The Global Methane Hub has announced a significant $30 million investment dedicated to accelerating research on low-emission rice production (The Brazil Report).

People Moves

🇩🇪 Dr. Judith Hartmann will step in as the new Chief Financial Officer at Bayer AG (Bayer).

🇦🇺 AgriProve has appointed Kieren Whittock as the new General Manager (AgriProve).

Other News

🇸🇬 In a notable development, Hoxton Farms has filed for approval in Singapore for its cultivated pork fat (Green Queen).

🇺🇸 Corteva has launched its first bioinsecticide, emphasizing the importance of integrating biologicals with synthetic compounds (AgFunderNews).

🇺🇸 Biotalys shares surged as the EPA proposed registration for its first biofungicide (Investing).

🇸🇬 Growy Singapore has entered provisional liquidation following a tumultuous first year in business (Vertical Farm Daily).

🇩🇰 The Danish insect agriculture firm ENORM has declared bankruptcy after an unsuccessful restructuring effort (AgFunderNews).

🇫🇷 Naïo, an ag robotics startup, has made a comeback after enduring a challenging financial year (AgFunderNews).

🇺🇸 Believer Meats has received USDA approval to introduce cultivated chicken from its state-of-the-art production facility (Protein Production Technology).

🇺🇸 However, Meati is facing challenges once again as they reportedly missed payroll, leaving employees seeking answers (AgFunderNews).