Indigo Ag restructures, splits sustainability and biologicals units
The Boston-based regenerative agriculture startup is forming two separate business units for its sustainability solutions and biological products, marking one of the first big changes under the leadership of former Tyson Foods CEO Dean Banks.
The decision is part of a larger restructuring of Indigo Ag, aimed at streamlining operations and reorienting the company after three rounds of layoffs.
The company said it will continue to evaluate and exit non-essential businesses and strategies.
“By establishing our new business units and a renewed innovation orientation, alongside prudent restructuring and focusing of resources, we will be able to streamline our business and further develop our strategic partnerships to better serve our customers,” Banks said in a statement.
Georg Goeres and Ewan Lamont will lead the biologicals products and sustainability solutions divisions, respectively, according to a release. Indigo Ag also appointed Bernie Barbour as chief technology officer.
“I could not be more impressed by the passion and commitment of our team and am excited to realize the potential of this ‘NewIndigo’ as quickly as possible,” said Banks, who joined the startup on February 1.
Indigo recently completed a $270 million funding round, and the company plans on "taking further steps to de-risk its path to profitability through accelerating revenue growth and a decisively lower cost structure."
Software investor Arcadea Group acquires AgCode for new product
The Toronto-based firm acquired AgCode, a farm management software company focused on helping fruit and vegetable growers, to accelerate its product development and expansion into agriculture.
Founded in 2002 by Minnesota farmer Dion Harste, AgCode was initially designed to be a user-friendly traceability solution for the industry, but over the years transformed into an all-in-one platform to manage records, operations data, weather changes and even crop estimates.
Arcadea Group agreed to buy AgCode from San Francisco-based holding company Wilbur-Ellis for an undisclosed amount.
“We are thrilled to partner with AgCode and expand our presence in Agtech,” Daniel Eisen, co-founder and managing director of Arcadea, said in a statement this week.
This is Arcadea’s second investment in the space following last year’s acquisition of New Zealand-based Radfords, another farm management company focused on packaging and distribution.
With the combination of AgCode and Radfords, the software investor said it can provide customers with “field to wholesale” technology solutions that support efficiency, visibility and traceability goals.
On-demand pollinator gets investor buzz for hybrid rice application
Iowa-based PowerPollen raised 22.5 million euros, or roughly $24 million, in investor funding to scale and implement its pollination technology on a range of commodities, including hybrid rice.
The patented technology allows pollen to be collected, preserved for up to four years and applied on-demand, according to the company, improving crop yields by more than 20% in some cases.
“For years, our technology has proven effective in corn and continues to demonstrate strong potential for applications in other crops,” Todd Krone, co-founder and CEO of PowerPollen said in a statement. “With the new financing, we’ll continue to advance our technology.”
The funding round was led by the Liechtenstein Group, which established a joint venture with PowerPollen to improve rice yields. The plan is to create a viable commercial product by 2027.
