Innovation Sprints

Cellular agriculture includes techniques for making animal products with significantly reduced environmental impact. Cultivated meat is a prime example: it can slash greenhouse gas emissions, land use and water use considerably. Through a $40 million investment in R&D over five years, this multi-stakeholder Innovation Sprint, carried out by Aleph Farms, enables a just transition to resilient production systems that enhance food security, spur economic growth, empower local communities and foster regional cooperation.  

Crop One Holdings and Emirates Flight Catering entered a $40 million joint venture to open ECO 1 in Dubai, UAE. The 330,000 sqft facility will provide food security for the Middle East by producing over three tons of high-quality leafy greens daily, using 95% less water than conventionally grown produce. ECO 1 is designed for continuous output of clean leafy greens grown without pesticides or chemicals. Crop One is helping grow a more sustainable global food system through its industry-leading vertical farming technology. 

Agtech Accelerator is a venture capital-backed program established by Cultivator powered by Conexus, Economic Development Regina, and Emmertech to increase the investment, innovation, and adoption of climate-smart agriculture technology. Bolstered by the $60 Million Emmertech fund, this three-year innovation sprint provides agtech startups across Canada and the UK with access to the capital, programming, and connections needed to address issues in food security and the climate crisis.

The IBM Sustainability Accelerator is a pro-bono social impact program advancing nonprofit and government initiatives that support vulnerable populations while addressing environmental challenges, including climate change, extreme weather, and pollution. IBM will provide the first cohort of participating organizations with technology and expertise to accelerate climate-smart agriculture solutions. Partners are welcome globally. Through 2025, Accelerator projects will receive an estimated market value of $30 million in IBM support including $10 million focused on sustainable agriculture.

A new $40M initiative led by the CGIAR, in partnership with the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will unlock key climate-resilient traits from CGIAR’s vast global genebank collections. This Innovation Sprint will expand the utilization of high-value genetic diversity to address current and emerging climate challenges faced by millions of smallholder farmers worldwide. The initiative welcomes additional partners from all sectors to scale this critical work.

The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) and the World Farmers Organisation established AgMission™. At the core of climate change is greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Agriculture contributes roughly 13 percent of global GHG emissions, yet the sector has the potential to also mitigate climate change. While advances to activate agriculture’s mitigation potential are happening in fields and labs around the world, there is no unifying force connecting this work or fostering inclusivity and collaboration among scientists, farmers and ranchers.

AgMission is filling this void by establishing a global collective of farmers, ranchers and scientists co-creating and rapidly expanding innovation, adaptation and the adoption of climate-smart technologies. By driving collaboration across agricultural and scientific communities, AgMission is accelerating effective, economically viable and locally customized climate-smart solutions.

AgMission has raised $45 million, including FFAR's matching funds, and continues to fundraise for this unprecedented initiative.

The ClimateAi team seeks to “climate-proof” 0.5 billion acres around the world by 2024 by deploying AI-driven adaptation tools that boost agricultural productivity despite climate change. ClimateAi’s innovative climate analytics (1 day to 40 years out) help farmers and agribusinesses adapt by enabling data-driven decisions to maximize yield, crop quality, resource efficiency, and financial stability/profits while reducing GHG emissions per ton. ClimateAi recently raised $12M from investors and $250k in grant funding from the National Science Foundation.

• Studying the Economics of Regenerative Soil Health Management Systems in Cotton Production
• Soil Health Farmer Networks
• Looking at Soil in a New Way 
• The Soil Health Institute Internship Program