Food and farming are attracting celebrity investment including from Meghan Markle, Oprah and Katy Perry to name a few. While food and farming are increasingly in the limelight in part driven by the pandemic. COVID-19 has catapulted food and farming to the forefront of the minds of ordinary folks who have had first hand experiences related to food shortage, food supply and food safety surfaced.
Now the sector has piqued the interest of investors too including celebrities. In 2020 there were a steady stream of investments in a sector that has traditionally struggled to attract investors especially venture capitalists who seek fast returns.
Agtech has seen robust investment in recent years. Growers are increasingly seeking solutions for challenges including a severe labor shortage and water and land management issues, and open to adopting innovations that increase yield and efficiency.
A growing number of investors are also banking on companies that support sustainability and promote conservation. In 2020, venture capitalists invested $4 billion in startups in the agtech space, according to Crunchbase a research company. This is up significantly from the $2.8 billion that venture capital investors placed in agtech startups across the globe in 2019.
Little surprise that public figures are jumping on the bandwagon too. “Celebrities have access to tech thought leaders and see what they are excited about and want to be in on the new trend,” says Jaleh Daie an entrepreneur and seed investor with a focus on agtech. Daie observes that the agrifoodtech sector is climbing and has yet to see its peak.
Read more at Forbes (Amy Wu)