News and Analysis on Global Agri-Tech Innovation, Investment and Regulation
Start-up profile
Dutch agtech founder Peter Millenaar argues that conventional spraying misses up to 20% of crops – and says only plant-level precision will deliver the next leap in agricultural productivity
Fermentation facility at Ludwigshafen underlines strategic shift towards biotech crop protection amid supply chain and regulatory pressures
Oxford spinout tackles consistency challenge in biologicals as fertiliser giant doubles down on Biosciences strategy
Fertiliser major trims production and capex amid volatile markets, while positioning biologicals as a strategic growth pillar
PepsiCo and Fertiberia are expanding a long‑term partnership to deploy green hydrogen‑based fertiliser across Europe, supporting more than 1,500 farmers as the food giant targets deep cuts to agricultural emissions in its supply chain
As UK campaigners call for a ban on glyphosate as a pre-harvest desiccant, pressure is mounting on regulators – and on the industry – to find viable alternatives. Yet while options exist, none currently match glyphosate’s unique combination of...
Brussels has loosened state‑aid rules to help farmers and transport operators cope with soaring fuel and fertiliser prices linked to the conflict involving Iran, but payments will depend on national governments acting
Yara International chief executive Sven Tore Holsether has warned that the war in Iran risks removing up to 10 billion meals a week from global food production, even as the fertiliser major posted better‑than‑expected Q1 2026 results. While near‑term...
As Syngenta commits $130m to a new bioscience R&D hub in the UK, Dave Hughes – the company’s global technology scout – explains why digital science, biologicals and soil innovation will define the next era of agtech
Scientists in Sweden say they have taken an important step towards combating potato late blight, a destructive plant disease historically linked to Ireland’s Great Famine and now spreading more widely as climate change reshapes growing conditions.
After validating its four-step regenerative framework across 35 pilots in 25 countries, Geneva-based SAI Platform says the results offer global food and beverage supply chains a practical, flexible route to scale regenerative farming without losing local...
With capital tightening and exits slow to materialise, Leaps by Bayer’s Derek Norman argues that agtech must adopt a tougher, more disciplined mindset – testing to fail early, not to validate success – if it wants to remain investable
Start-up profile
As peptides, dsRNA and other fragile biological actives move closer to market, Italian nano‑biotech Nanomnia believes growth will increasingly come from developers who need delivery to be enabling, not incremental
New data from BIA BioSolutions shows UK biosolutions companies have raised £1.46bn in equity since 2018, underlining the sector’s growing importance as policymakers and industry look for domestic, biology‑based solutions to insulate the economy from...
Biosolutions company Rovensa Next is rolling out a global AI platform and training academy to help distributors and growers move from fragmented biosolutions data to more practical, crop‑specific and evidence‑based recommendations in the field
Ultra‑low asparagine wheat developed by Rothamsted Research shows how precision gene editing can help food producers meet tightening safety regulations, without sacrificing productivity, marking a significant step forward for safer, more compliant food...
As fertiliser prices surge following geopolitical turmoil in the Middle East, UK growers are under pressure to cut input costs without sacrificing yields. A new on‑farm collaboration between crop intelligence company Messium and a Northamptonshire grower...
A new partnership between plant biomanufacturing start-up Foray Bioscience and New York-based nut tree breeder Z’s Nutty Ridge aims to overcome one of agriculture’s hardest scaling problems: how to commercialise elite varieties of long‑lived perennial...
Deep Science Ventures and Renaissance Philanthropy unveil a new venture creation project aimed at building a generation of field‑ready crop‑resilience technologies backed not by traditional VC capital, but by high‑ambition philanthropic funding willing...
Miraterra is piecing together a complete soil analytic software service, with the help of capital funding and its acquisition of Trace Genomics
The QUOLL electronic nose from Australia is moving toward commercialisation as researchers advance field validation and prepare the technology for wider use on farms.
Investor profile
The world’s only wine‑focused tech investment fund says vineyards are facing agricultural challenges sooner – and more severely – than other sectors. Xinomavro Ventures believes that makes them the ideal proving ground for new ag innovations
Agri‑tech innovation is often synonymous with automation, robotics, AI and gene‑edited crops. But for many farming communities around the world, transformative technology looks very different. Sometimes it’s not an algorithm or a sensor, but a tool...
The UK’s first crop of ‘low‑carbon’ potatoes has arrived on supermarket shelves, marking a milestone in efforts to prove that more sustainably produced foods can secure both retailer backing and mass‑market consumer uptake
Agri Smile is preparing to distribute its biostimulant in Vietnam after field trials saw an increase in rice yields by 43% while delivering a sixfold return on investment.
The UK’s flagship farm‑payment scheme has been overhauled into a more streamlined, delivery‑focused model. But will SFI26’s push toward measurable, on‑farm action transform precision agriculture into a practical necessity for British farmers?
The European Alliance for Regenerative Agriculture says its new Regen Compass provides a trusted, farmer‑centred navigation tool to bring clarity and integrity to Europe’s fast‑growing but fragmented regenerative agriculture landscape
With major evidence gaps remaining around how PFAS behave in soils and what this means for food systems, the government has launched new plan to track ‘forever chemicals’
With sugar beet under pressure in France’s climate‑stressed Grand Est region, the French MMRV specialist teams up with beet producer Cristal Union and the University of Reims to harness AI, primary data and a farm ‘digital twin’ to accelerate the...
A breakthrough by scientists at the John Innes Centre and the Earlham Institute has revealed for the first time how “mother plants” pass environmental information directly to their developing seeds – a finding that could transform approaches to crop...
New research hub aims to fast‑track regenerative practices across McCain’s 4,400‑farm global network as latest data shows progress slipping from 71% to 69%
Brazil is a major importer of fertiliser, but one Canadian company is planning to flip the script with a potash mining project set to launch in 2030
Proper soil testing can be a crucial first step in developing a fertiliser plan that improves soil health and reduces expenses
Redox Bio-Nutrients has certified the composition, efficacy, and safety of its Mainstay Si product with The Fertilizer Institute, as farmers across the globe search for ways to reduce their input costs amid market volatility
State of the Sector
In this State of the Sector report, AgTechNavigator examines how rice production is evolving under the pressures of climate volatility, labour shortages and rising costs, highlighting how innovation and policy is impacting this important staple crop.
Investor profile
Investor Naeem Lakhani believes fixing human health starts with fixing soils. His agtech fund, The First Thirty, is raising €100m to back companies connecting soil biology, food quality, and human health – powered by AI and collapsing genomics costs
As regenerative agriculture gains momentum, UK-based Soil Acoustics has unveiled a handheld tool that uses sound to assess soil biodiversity – offering farmers a faster, more scientific alternative to traditional tests
The European Commission’s plan to streamline pesticide and biocontrol approvals promises faster access to innovation – but health groups warn it could weaken safeguards
Influential former NFU president Baroness Batters calls for a “new deal” for British farming, highlighting that despite enthusiasm for technology it too often fails to align to business needs or find practical application on farms
Soil Association Exchange is taking its model to Europe, starting with eight farms in Spain. The goal: to measure and reward environmental improvements, strengthen resilience and accelerate regenerative transitions amid mounting climate and regulatory...
Lloyds Bank has launched a dedicated Agricultural Transition Finance loan to help UK farmers overcome early cashflow barriers to regenerative and sustainable systems
World Vegetable Centre’s okra trials show biochar can simultaneously increase vegetable yields, improve soil health, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, highlighting its potential as a cornerstone of climate-smart, regenerative agriculture.
The Trump admin bolsters regenerative agriculture with a pilot programme, as part of the broader Make America Healthy Again initiative
Improving soil health is not just about doing what’s right for the environment, as soil’s ability to sequester carbon and promote resiliency can be a key investment opportunity
A six-inch box buried in the soil might hold the key to powering agriculture’s digital future. So believes UK-based Bactery, which is pioneering bacteria-powered “soil batteries” that generate clean, continuous energy from the natural activity of...
Backed by the Bezos Earth Fund, the Earth Rover Program has launched a global initiative to make soil health visible, measurable, and actionable using seismic technology without disturbing the ground. Its goal: to transform how farmers and scientists...
Born from Imperial College and Royal College of Art’s innovation labs, Muju Earth is tackling one of agriculture’s toughest challenges of soil degradation with Aeropod, a biodegradable capsule designed to restore soil health and cut costs. Its mission:...
Hemp seed and genetic company Flura is working with the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to demonstrate the potential of biosolids for use in sustainable agriculture and hemp production
Bayer’s Crop Science Division has teamed up with UK agritech start-up Elaniti to harness the power of soil biology and artificial intelligence. The goal? To help farmers improve crop performance and sustainability by decoding the hidden signals in the...
Swedish company Arevo introduces Arginex, a molecularly defined crop nutrition technology that combines arginine with phosphate to deliver consistent performance, reduce nitrogen waste, and help farmers move away from mineral fertilisers