Is the age of free money over?
The answer is probably yes.In recent years, 'free' money has been abundant in the market due to unique microeconomic conditions. But the tides are turning with markets becoming unstable, inflation rising, and central banks attempting to stamp out this inflation. Meanwhile, companies that have ridden the wave and enjoyed the perks of inflated valuations and seemingly endless 'free' money will soon have to grapple with the consequences of the current economic climate. It's not all bad, especi...
June 15, 2022MenuAid Raises $1M to Develop AI-Powered FoodTech Platform
MenuAid, a cloud-based food technology platform that is solving the “What's for dinner?” dilemma has received a $1M investment from Sprout, New Zealand’s specialist AgriTech and FoodTech seed-stage investor. MenuAid provides highly personalised recipes and smart shopping lists on subscription, tapping into global consumer preferences for healthy and convenient home cooked meals, that are affordable and reduce food waste and packaging....
May 30, 2022Can we reduce emissions and keep feeding the world?
20-30% of global emissions come from agricultural emissions. New Zealand's contribution to global emissions is 0.16%, and of that 0.08% comes from our agricultural activities. While many view this figure as a negative, it's not painting the whole picture.When looking at these figures, it's important to look at them from a global perspective and a per kilogram of product and nutritional perspective....
May 11, 2022Meet the Founders - Bayuble
Sometimes big ideas come in small packages. Founded by three young women while still at high school, Bayuble was born out of the Young Enterprise Scheme and is all about solving the problem of plastic waste from fruit labels.Meet the founders Zoe Rookes, Maggie Peacock and Sarah Wixon. They are one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake....
May 3, 2022Meet the Founders - Axis7
By 2050 there is estimated to be an extra 2 billion mouths to feed. To support that we’ll need a 70% increase in crop production. The only problem is, we don’t have the labour to harvest what we currently produce. It’s a big problem and one that Kiwi business Axis7 is hoping to help solve with the help of robotics. Meet the founders Josh Barnett and Scott Harvey. They are one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake....
April 27, 2022Meet the Founders - Welfare Concepts
Improving animal welfare standards in New Zealand has been a focal point for the primary industries for many years. Huge efforts and gains have been made in this space, and one Kiwi start-up company is hoping to improve animal welfare even further.Meet the founders of Welfare Concepts, Richard Emslie and Richard Olde Riekerink. They are one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake....
April 20, 2022Meet the Founders - MenuAid
Meal kit services have become increasingly popular in recent years. In fact, the global industry is worth 10 billion dollars and growing 13% year on year. While it might seem like the silver bullet for the ‘what’s for dinner’ conundrum many households have, it’s not always the case. Meal-kit delivery providers can be costly, unsustainable, inflexible and ultimately not really solving the problem. Enter MenuAid, a seamless menu planning platform that makes mealtimes easier with week...
April 12, 2022Meet the Founders - BioGold
Pine pollen has been used traditionally for 3000+ of years as a superfood and herbal supplement, and one Kiwi company is forging a market for it here in New Zealand. The pine pollen market in China is worth almost $4 billion, but few people here are aware of its incredible properties. Meet the founder Carl Meyer of BioGold, one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake. After studying one of New Zealand’s largest industries, forestry, he ...
April 5, 2022Meet the Founders - Aimer Development
Imagine having the potential to earn an extra $500 per hectare just by using artificial intelligence. This is what Jeremy Bryant, founder of Aimer Development, estimates the gain could be for farmers by using AI. Aimer Development is one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake. Jeremy and his wife Michelle make up the duo behind the company building the first artificial general intelligence for farming. Jeremy is no stranger to util...
March 29, 2022Meet the Founders - Viktual+
The dietary supplements market is expected to grow to $272 billion by 2028, and one Kiwi company is hoping to get in on the action. Victual is a word that means ‘food supplies and provisions’. It is the inspiration behind the name of supplement company Viktual+, one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake. Vikutal+ is the only wellbeing supplement that combines ancient Māori and Pasifika wisdom, New Zealand’s purest ingredients and...
March 22, 2022Meet the Founders - Landkind
Major problems face agriculture like water usage, traceability, genetics and automation. To ensure the future of the industry, addressing these issues and consumer demands requires real-time in-depth data. And that's just what start-up Landkind is setting out to do. Meet the founder, Matt Flowerday and Software Business Manager, Greg Stevenson. They are one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake. The duo brings a robust understanding of ...
March 15, 2022Meet the Founders - Terps & Co.
Lose the booze, but not the feels. That’s the tagline of Terps & Co, a non-alcoholic, plant-based beverage company that is on a mission to share the benefits of terps with the world. “Our challenge for ourselves is to give people a better version of their experience with alcohol, without taking away the things they love about it.” Meet the founders of Terps & Co. James Crow, Arjun Narayanan and Arjun Bhargava. They are one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Acceler...
March 8, 2022Meet the Founders - Hatchery Hub
The global aquaculture industry is projected to grow 6% per year and is a sustainable option for growth within the seafood industry. With global food demand set to double by 2050, aquaculture has all the pieces of the puzzle to experience significant growth in the coming years if the industry can boost levels of innovation to support that growth. Enter the Hatchery Hub, one of the start-ups taking part in our three-month Sprout 2022 Accelerator in the Cohort VIII intake. Meet founder Dr Nikki Ha...
March 2, 2022Meet the Founders - Loxley Innovation
Each year 52 million tonnes of carbon dioxide is produced by agricultural machinery. Our reliance on fossil fuels to grow and produce our food is significant, but it doesn't have to be.Meet Founder Duncan Aitken and head of operations Tony Tsai, the team behind Loxley Innovation, the Christchurch-based company looking to tap into the power of electricity to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels to grow food by creating electric tractors. With backgrounds in software engineering and electronic...
February 23, 2022Investing in your future
Has the New Year got you re-evaluating your career? With the ‘great resignation’ sweeping around the world - you’re not alone. Each New Year, thousands of people begin searching for new career opportunities, hoping to inch closer to their dream job, get a pay rise or, more importantly, find a job that gives them purpose. Add to that the rising spirit of entrepreneurship in New Zealand, and you’ve got the perfect recipe for opportunity, particularly in the AgTech and FoodTech ecosystem.&n...
February 11, 2022Dairy tech startup ProTag raises $1m from Sprout for its smart cow sensors
Agtech start-up Protag has raised $1m from investment firm Sprout to fast track the development of its smart ear tag sensors, which transmit crucial health and location data to dairy farmers within seconds. Protag’s small internet-enabled device clips onto a cow’s ear, allowing farmers to continuously monitor the animal’s health, grazing and breeding habits. Machine learning is used to process data from the device’s temperature, movement, and location sensors, helping farmers map animal ...
February 3, 2022From the ocean to organoleptic products, the 2022 Sprout Cohort VIII has it all.
The 2022 Cohort VIII has landed, and eleven companies have been selected to participate in the eighth Sprout Accelerator....
January 20, 2022Future Food-Tech Announces Two Innovation Challenges in Partnership with Danone North America and Givaudan
Food-Tech Start-Ups are Invited to Submit Solutions that Improve the Texture and Functionality of Plant-Based Cheese OR Natural Ingredients for Use in Foods that Support Immunity, Energy and Sleep. APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN until 31 January. Apply now. Oliver Katz, Conference Producer at Future Food-Tech says “We’re delighted to be working with Danone North America and Givaudan to launch these Innovation Challenges to highlight and scale solutions to some of the most fundamental challenges f...
January 12, 2022Mapping Platform LandKind Wins HortTech Challenge
Landkind, an agriculture mapping software company out of Tauranga has won the first Sprout x AWS (Amazon Web Services) HortTech Challenge....
January 6, 2022Adapting New Zealand innovation for global use.
Innovative farming practices are only going to become more important in coming years as we strive to feed a growing population, face more extreme environments, and deal with increased competition for resources. To deal with this, the global AgTech market will play a massive role. Being expected to be worth US$ 41.5 million by 2027 and growing at a CAGR of 11.3%, the global agritech sector is seeing such a major boom in investment and provides a great opportunity for New Zealand to establis...
November 4, 2021Supporting 'Soil to Stomach' Companies for Over Six Years
From plant-based ‘tuna’, to technology that uses insect odorant receptors to make a device that can smell and taste, Sprout Agritech is boosting agtech and foodtech companies around Aotearoa. Starting as an accelerator based out of The Factory in Palmerston North in 2015, they created their own company in 2019 and now run two cohorts a year and can invest up to $40m in companies in New Zealand. Katherine Blaney found out more....
October 26, 2021Meet the Founders - Clarospec
Worldwide, the consumer demand for meat is forecasted to change, with trends showing that people are now seeking quality over quantity. It’s this demand, and the opportunity for increased meat export values, that has led to the development of Clarospec, ‘the science behind New Zealand’s red meat story’. Introducing Clarospec™, the new AgResearch system that enables real-time meat product quality measurement, through the use of hyperspectral imaging technology. Cla...
October 26, 2021Meet the Founder - Map & Zap
“Once you recognise you have a good idea, the key is to build up a team of people around you with the knowledge and expertise to actually pull it off. I’m very proud of the team we have built; we’ve managed to achieve a lot in a short timeframe, and with a small budget.” Introducing Map and Zap, the team of scientists and technologists striving to make weed control a more sustainable practice, through their new AI-based weed ID and laser technology system. Map and Zap is one of the...
October 20, 2021Meet the Founders - Momojo
Originally hailing from the mountainous regions that divide Asia and Europe, the history of kefir dates back many centuries, having been traditionally used by both the Tibetan and Caucasian cultures. The word kefir comes from a Turkish word ‘keyif,’ which translates as ‘good feeling’ and the drink is designed to support digestive health. Meet Scott Butland and Torben Sorensen, the team behind Momojo, the Puhoi based company producing the traditional, cultured, fermented dairy ...
October 12, 2021Meet the Founders - ProTag
“It allows the farmer to relax, with the understanding that the technology is going to do its job properly.” Meet Baden Parr and Tyrel Glass, the two Massey PHD students behind new smart cattle tracker ProTag. Protag is one of the eleven AgTech and FoodTech start-ups taking part in our 2021 Sprout Accelerator Cohort B....
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