Tech platform WayBeyond, with funding from BASF, eyes opportunities in CEA
BASF Venture Capital GmbH, a venture capital company with a focus in agtech and circular economies, has invested in a digital agronomy solution technology platform called WayBeyond.
Founded in New Zealand and now headquartered in the U.S., WayBeyond is a company focused on improving crop yields, crop quality and grower profitability for controlled environment agriculture operations. It seeks to do this through data capture, farm management and prediction tools, according to a news release.
“The use of controlled environment agriculture to grow fruits and vegetables continues to expand globally. As the next generation of growers enters the agriculture industry, we believe that their entry point will be CEA. WayBeyond is positioned to transform the way these CEA farmers grow the crops that will feed our growing population,” Markus Solibieda, managing director of BASF Venture Capital, said in the release.
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Growth in CEA, specifically low- to mid-tech CEA, is expected to increase steadily as the global population rises and as sustainability goals drive concerns of food shortages, encouraging growers to reduce the environmental footprint of their operations. Major production markets include Mexico, Morocco and Spain, while CEA is also growing in other regions including Southeast Asia, both North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa, and South America. Export markets include the U.S. and Europe, according to the release.
“We are delighted to have BVC as an investor,” Darryn Keiller, founder and CEO of WayBeyond, said in the release. “As a strategic VC fund, they are in a special position to appreciate WayBeyond as a disruptive business model. We are perfectly aligned around the vision of a digitally empowered, sustainable agricultural industry that will bring vast benefits to the seed and crop protection providers. Together, we are focused on supporting farm operators and growers.”
Data collection tools and the artificial intelligence-powered agronomy insights platform FarmRoad are two strategies WayBeyond will use to transform the CEA industry, according to the release.
FarmRoad is like an expert agronomist for every farm that gives growers farm- and crop-specific insights and recommendations to develop their growing decisions, improving yield, consistency and quality for more sustainable farming, the release said.
WayBeyond is also partnering with seed producers to use the FarmRoad platform and FarmRoad’s crop-contextual AI for seed efficacy and quality.
“WayBeyond’s solutions not only help growers visualize their growing operations, but also provide growers with the agronomic recommendations that they need to optimize yield and yield quality,” Neal Okarter, investment manager at BVC, said in the release.
