Agtech Action | Week of 02.12.22 - 02.18.22
Agtech Action is a weekly newsletter highlighting current events in the world of agtech, and some light-hearted commentary
The difference between grain-fed and grass-fed beef, a record-breaking strawberry (from Israel that weighs a half pound) and a dairy farmer and rancher debunk the NYT hit piece on ag. Adding antioxidants to milk chocolate, climate investing ‘boycott bills’ and a French truffle NFT.
The theme of the agtech week—the invisible hand—connects this week’s story on ‘avocados from Mexico’ and the protein wars (alt vs. animal). We try our best to inform and pontificate on all things food and ag in our weekly newsletter. Enjoy!
Food and the World:
CPMA to Canadian government: Give fresh produce a chance
Biggest Rise in Midwest Land Values in Over a Decade
Analyst: Look South for Growth in U.S. Pork Exports
U.S. Poultry Producers Harden Safety Measures as Bird Flu Spreads
Farm groups sue EPA to stop chlorpyrifos ban
U.S. suspends Mexican avocado imports, a nearly $3B industry (because of a threat from the cartels to a US safety inspector)
National Council of Agricultural Employers meets with Mexican embassy on COVID vaccinations
US west ‘megadrought’ is worst in at least 1,200 years, new study says
China Looks to Secure Supplies as Strains with U.S. and Its Allies Grow
Farmers Feel the Squeeze of Inflation
As Bayer Warns of More Glyphosate Shortages, Here's How Severe the Situation could be this Spring
Ukraine and ag exports (0:05 mark)
Western drought worst in 1,200 years (0:25 mark)
Califf confirmed to lead FDA in Senate squeaker
US bird flu case puts chicken, turkey farms on high alert
China could cut Soybean Demand by 30M Tonnes - Xinhua
Industry Experts Say New Ethanol Study Not Worth Their Time
Kentucky Confirms Second Case of Avian Influenza in Commercial Turkey Flock
January report: Shoppers buy less while produce prices rise
USDA: No end in sight for halt on Mexican avocado inspections
Report: USDA, Mexican officials work on avocado security measures
Exclusive: Paraguay soy crushers, hit by drought, risk running out of beans
Supply chain backlogs clearing (0:05 mark); great news!
Shoppers are more concerned about inflation (than COVID) (0:35 mark)
From crude oil to palm oil: Nigeria strives to diversify
In Sierra Leone’s swamps, female farmers make profits and peace
Ivory Coast to announce $20 mln cashew sector aid plan -source
Life in the soil was thought to be silent. What if it isn’t?
Agtech in the News:
Judge bars Biden administration from using key climate metric
Environmental outcomes of the US Renewable Fuel Standard
For Insect Farming to Work, Scientists Need to Build a Better Bug
The Elusive Hunt for a Robot That Can Pick a Ripe Strawberry
Yara buys 14% stake in Brazil farm trade platform Orbia
Will Apple-Picking Robots Save Agriculture—Or Ruin Farm Workers?
Europe’s most valuable vertical farm startup expands in US
Dissecting The USDA’s $1 Billion For Climate-Smart Commodities
ProducePay launches expedited financing option for U.S., Latin American growers
“Farmer’s fintechs” are turning Europe’s farms into carbon sinks
Do ESG Funds Live Up to Their Marketing Promises? One Watchdog Takes Another Look
Podcast and Video: How this guy took center-store AI tech to the perimeter for ordering efficiency
EPA says dicamba restrictions failed to prevent incidents, mulls further steps
How the BNDES wants to accelerate the recovery of forests
Climate change is a big problem for farmers in Hawaii
Brazilian agribusiness is more committed to decarbonization than other sectors
Bayer: Supplier's production shortfall may slow glyphosate deliveries
U.S. corn-based ethanol worse for the climate than gasoline, study finds
Nestle to increase its agriculture technology
$10M grant going to Fargo’s Grand Farm for autonomous agriculture technology
Marrone Bio and Corteva Agriscience Announce New Distribution Contract
55th World Ag Expo® Comes to a Close
Sustainability in packaging: Global regulatory development across 30 countries
How the pandemic scrambled the plant-based food industry
Fun:
The 5 Love Languages for Farmers
Record-breaking strawberry (1:00 mark); weighing in at over half a pound, picked on a family farm in central Israel
See The 2.78-Pound French Truffle Being Sold In An NFT Auction
Americans to spend $24B on Valentine’s Day (0:35 mark)
Cocoa imports, more than $5B every year (1:05 mark)
Adding antioxidants to milk chocolate (1:00 mark); making milk, not just dark, chocolate healthier using peanut skin powder
Helpful Resources:
Five charts that show US VC's record valuations in 2021
The Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) programs (for farmers to enroll in crop, price loss and other programs)
Rural Economy Posts Growth for 15 Straight Months
About the Food Sustainability Index
Feed costs versus mortality costs
Climate Change, Heat Stress, and U.S. Dairy Production
Rapid Increase in Farmland Values in Central Plains
Why experience sharing is key to entrepreneurial growth
5 Measures of Financial Efficiency
What is ‘conventional’ agriculture?
Interesting Reads:
Supercomputer helps Canadian researcher uncover thousands of viruses that could cause human diseases
NM Milkmaid Fact Checks New York Times Video Op-ed on Agriculture (mic drop on NYT’s opinion piece presented as ‘journalism’ on agriculture)
Biden administration proposes limiting consideration of public benefits for green card applications
Grain-fed beef vs. grass-fed beef — what’s the difference?
Every Bite of Your Chicken Sandwich Comes With Labor Problems
Re-Engineering Our Supply Chains
Arctic seed vault to receive rare deposits
‘This Can’t be Legal:’ Uber Eats driver questions food cooked in a home kitchen
Precision Irrigation to the Rescue for California Growers
How Technology Is Transforming Global Food Systems
New Bayer Row Crop Herbicide with New Mode of Action Coming By 2030
Hard bargains as European retailers take on food giants
Devex Dish: Global food security could rely on this Arctic facility
This California farming town has a toxic carcinogen in its water. Why are solutions so slow?
Avocado Spat Brews After U.S. Inspector Is Threatened in Mexico (Update: imports resume)
USDA study shows working conditions in meatpacking plants likely drove coronavirus outbreaks
Starbucks union vote count in Arizona postponed, ballots impounded
Bill Gates and Chris Sacca invest in energy storage start-up Antora to help heavy industry go green
USDA: Farm income to stay strong, but input costs to bite in 2022
Consumers want animal-free dairy because it's better for cows, study finds
How high can avocado prices go? And then, how low?
Legislators push to support service workers who lost income due to Covid-19
Young kids eating marijuana edibles increased poison calls four-fold in CNY
Food Fight: Inside Team Biden’s Disastrous Meeting with Restaurant Leaders Over Covid Relief
Wine joins the list of things that millennials are killing
Weston foundation launches innovation hub in bid to enhance food security
Is it impossible to certify Impossible Pork as kosher or halal?
Writing the book on helping farmers tackle climate change (how Kellogg partnered with agtech startups to help reduce rice farmers environmental impact)
Climate investing 'boycott bills' flood state capitals
Canadian farm groups call for restoration of essential transport corridors
Innovative Foods Are on The Rise. Can They Fix Our Food Systems?
University geneticist working with robot-tasting in berry research ... kind of
McDonald's Files Trademark for Metaverse-Based 'Virtual Restaurant'
Pitchbook Analyst Note: ESG, Impact, and Greenwashing in PE and VC
Satellite imagery gives researchers timeline of when swine waste lagoons were built
Characteristics of key deal types in Africa, 2021
Electric vehicles run over ethanol and gas
New Report: Wisconsin doesn’t have Enough Land for All the Manure
Judge sends animal waste reporting exemption back to EPA
Michelin is working on airless tires for their electric cars (1:00 mark)
Educator Helps Students Find Direction Through Agriculture
Finance:
Angel Seafood board accepts Laguna Bay takeover bid
ESG funds managing $1T are stripped of sustainable tag by Morningstar
John Deere outperforms earnings expectations (0:35 mark)
The case for Indian agtech investment
FoodDocs raises US$2.4M to slash food safety compliance time using AI
Fierra Comox appoints new head of sustainable investment
LACERA adds TIAA farmland stakes through $450M in secondaries
Tattarang buys Balfour Downs from Chinese owner for Harvest Road portfolio
Deere Is a Buy for 2022. It’s the ‘Tesla of Farming.’ (this should not be interpreted as stock advice or any financial advice)
Hancock sells cotton aggregation to Australian farming family
Red Sea Farms eyes Series A for expansion into harshest climates
Serra Capital Ag Tech Fund Closes On $45M In Commitments
Cooks Venture Raises $50M to Advance Regenerative Ag, Poultry Genetics Platform
Area One narrows strategy to close Fund IV on C$310M
ANZ invests $50M in Pollination to form new ‘strategic partnership’
Agtech Theme of the Week: The Invisible Hand
If you are a history and economics buff, like me, then you will know that the term Invisible Hand is a metaphor for the forces (not seen) that move the free market economy. Moreover, the invisible hand describes the dynamic between self-interested individuals, market supply and demand and the natural course of prices and trade. The invisible hand can, and will, be used to describe several stories from this week in agtech (the avocados from Mexico) and phenomenon playing out in food and ag (the battle between alt and animal proteins).
The avocados story this week was rather interesting; it started with suspension of imports from Mexico because of a phone threat to a USDA inspector, that quickly was resolved within the week. The thing that stands out about this is not only the speed with which this was resolved, but why it was. As Mexican President Obrador suggests, ‘there are political and economic interests’ at play here, considering that Michoacán, the state where most of avocados in Mexico are grown, provides 8 out of every 10 avocadoes shipped to the U.S, and the fact that avocado prices were trading as high as $95 per carton after the news of closed imports. Were arbitrage interests at play here disguised as a safety incident?
And then there is the battle of the proteins, namely alternative versus animal. This battle typically starts with the following premises: animal agriculture (livestock, dairy, etc.) is the largest contributor to GHGs, and that alternative proteins (like the Impossible Foods, Beyond Meats of the world) are the path to more sustainable agriculture value chains and systems. I give you Exhibits A and B (among many others) that show there is no clear scientific consensus around livestock’s environmental impact. While the alternative proteins claims are better for the environment, these new products still rely on industrial farming and we do not know if they are truly better for the environment and nutritional consequences of consuming the faux meats. Couple this with short sells of alt protein stock, research published by Stanford University and projections for the global protein market, and it makes you wonder about the invisible hand behind it all. No shame in the game, we are ALL self-interested consumers.
That’s all for now. Have a great weekend and thank you for reading.
BD
Brandon Day is the Chief Operating Officer of the Yield Lab Institute, the global agtech think-tank, non-profit arm of The Yield Lab global network of venture capital funds and accelerator programs.