3Bar Biologics won the Western Growers/S2G Ventures’ AgSharks® Competition, earning a $250,000 equity investment offer to take its microbe technology from development to market.
The seed funding was awarded by S2G Ventures after 3Bar Biologics competed against four other companies inventing new technology solutions to solve agriculture’s most pressing issues, according to a news release.
“In an industry forced to shoulder the crushing weight of poorly designed regulations, perpetual labor shortages and water supply insecurity, innovation is essential,” Dave Puglia, president and CEO of Western Growers, said in the release.
“3Bar Biologics embodies the entrepreneurial spirit that will help our farmers overcome these challenges and continue to feed the world.”
3Bar Biologics specializes in customized technologies and bio-manufacturing solutions for living agricultural microbe products, according to the company.
In addition to investment capital, 3Bar Biologics will receive international recognition, mentoring from WG and S2G, potential access to farm acreage to pilot their technologies and exposure to WG’s expansive network of leading fresh produce companies, according to the release.
“The AgSharks Competition continues to bring together leading growers and entrepreneurs in the space,” Aaron Rudberg, managing director and COO of S2G Ventures, said in the release. “We’re thrilled to have selected 3Bar Biologics at this year’s competition. The biologics market is rapidly growing but struggles with issues of efficacy and stability and 3Bar’s innovative solution is poised to solve many of these challenges.”
During the competition, the agtech startups pitched to six expert judges and a live audience where they were evaluated on the strength of their solution and potential to scale, among other assessment categories, according to the release.
The AgSharks competition was hosted by Stuart Woolf, President and CEO of Woolf Farming & Processing, and held during the Western Growers 2021 Annual Meeting at the Fairmont Grand Del Mar in San Diego.
The release said AgSharks premiered in 2017 with the goal of supporting game-changing startups and technologies, and since its inception, three agtech starts ups – Hazel Technologies, AgVoice and Burro – have received a total of $2.5 million in investment offers from S2G Ventures. More than 100 applicants applied for the AgSharks event in 2021.
