Posted on by Miguel Granier

Innovations in Agriculture

At Invested Development, we believe innovative technologies in farming will play a key role in ensuring that food production meets the calorie needs of the growing global population.  To date, we have invested in five ventures whose innovative technologies have applications in agriculture solutions: OnFarm, Cropin, iProcure, Rowbot, and Promethean Power Systems. Below are articles highlighting how innovation in farming technology is improving agriculture. Investing in Agriculture: Innovation is Changing the Face of Farming by Kathryn Boothby on Equities.com Finding a way to reduce costs while increasing production on farms is becoming more and more critical as both demand for agriculture commodities and costs of inputs continue to rise. In order to keep up with the rising global population with limited land available for cultivation, the necessary increase in production must come from innovations in farming technologies. This need for efficiency and sustainability is driving major innovation in agriculture. New technologies are addressing major issues like traceability, farm management and resource efficiency. As new technologies continue to change the face of the sector, agriculture is becoming an emerging sector for investment. Helping Farmers in Identifying Problems and Improving Produce by Neesha Thunga K on Livemint As India’s population continues to rise rapidly, food production is trailing behind. Entrepreneurs like Krishna Kumar and Kunal Prasad, founders of our portfolio company, Cropin Technology Solutions, believe that technology is the answer to closing the gap in production. Cropin has developed a cloud-based farm management solution that brings together farms and supporting organizations to increase productivity and ensure last-mile traceability. Cropin supports more than 200,000 farmers in 14 states of India and has helped improve productivity by at least 12% on some farms, minimizing the use of inputs and reducing loses by 18%. Research Focuses on Closing Yield Gap by Stephanie Henry on AgWeek Crop science researchers at the University of Illinois are attempting to identify practical solutions to increasing yields to meet the food, feed and fuel demands of the growing population. A recent study from the Illinois Crop Physiology Laboratory quantifies the US corn yield gap, defined as the difference between a farmer’s yield and the potential yield of the field. The study found that by using a farm management system that addressed plant population, insect resistance, supplemental nitrogen, and crop nutrition, resulted in a yield increase of 28%. The study also concluded that no single factor or technology accounted for the increase in yield. It was the result of the factors acting together that produced the highest yields. Subsequently, researchers are hypothesizing that yields can be further increased in a sustainable way with continued efforts to develop and advance farming technologies. New Here?