Saskatchewan’s bid to become a hub for agricultural technology continues with the recent launch of Agtech Accelerator.
Economic Development Regina, Cultivator powered by Conexus, and venture capital fund Emmertech teamed up to announce the program at Canada’s Virtual Farm Show.
“Tighten your lug nuts, Canada,” said Cultivator advisory board member Kyle Folk as he launched the program.
Folk is an entrepreneur who established Intragrain Technologies, which was later acquired by a publicly traded company. He said the situation has changed since he launched his bin monitoring system about 10 years ago.
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“Our entrepreneurial ecosystem has advanced leaps and bounds, and the attention Saskatchewan has generated is overdue and well-earned,” Folk said. “The connectivity of precision agriculture solutions that have come to market over the last number of years have put additional money in farmers’ pockets, have moved the needle on waste reduction and have given them an arsenal of tools to be able to minimize risks. To think that we’re just scratching the surface is incredible.”
Agtech Accelerator will help early-stage to growth-stage Canadian ag tech companies with resources, programs and funding. Folk said it is the catalyst for ag tech that has been missing.
The accelerator will be open to ag tech and food tech companies that focus on big data and predictive analysis, supply chain, traceability and sustainability, precision agriculture, robotics and automation, farm management software, sensing, the Internet of Things and animal health.
Economic Development Regina said the fund is backed by venture capital. Companies selected to participate will receive equity investments from Emmertech.
Innovation Saskatchewan has come on board as a funding partner with a $300,000 commitment over the next three years.
EDR said one cohort per year will be chosen through an application process. Programming will occur in the winter and the companies will then pitch their ideas to a judging panel at Demo Day.
“Fundamentally, we need a new approach to supporting ag tech if we’re looking to become a global leader in this space,” said Sean O’Connor, head managing director, Conexus Venture Capital Inc. and Emmertech.
He said linking top start-up founders with innovative farmers is critical.
Since the launch, EDR has also announced partnerships between the Accelerator and the University of Saskatchewan, University of Regina and Saskatchewan Polytechnic.
“Having an ag specific venture capital fund, an incubator and now an ag tech accelerator is the perfect tri-crop that’s going to yield massive results,” added Folk.
