Digital agricultural analytics company Agrible has been acquired by Nutrien, the largest provider of crop inputs and services in the world, for $63 million.
Founded in 2012 in Champaign, Illinois, Agrible consists of a team of agronomists, atmospheric scientists, growers, and developers who all strive to provide farmers with “the insight to decide”. Beginning at the field level, Agrible has built a advanced platform and line of products that include agronomic and on-farm advisory tools, predictive analytics, data science capabilities, and a global sustainability business designed to serve as a conduit to connect agricultural producers with agricultural, food, and consumer products companies to “measure, benchmark, and empower sustainable crop production.”
In February 2016 the company launched Morning Farm Report, the delivery framework for its four predictive products at the time – Rainfall, Field Intel, Tractor Time, and Yield Engine. Today Agrible’s primary digital products include Morning Farm Report®, Spray Smart®, Nutrient Engine, and Find My Seed®, which number among numerous other complementary digital and mobile offerings.
The company’s top geography is currently the U.S., though it has a presence across multiple global regions with 17,000 participating growers operating on 11 million acres in aggregate.
“Agrible has dedicated its business strategy and development activity to building market-leading data science and digital tools that provide growers with the information and insights they need, when and where they need them,” said Paul Miller, chief science officer and co-founder of Agrible.
Timeline
The first time Agrible emerged on GAI News’ funding radar was in February 2016 when the company announced it had raised a $4.1 million Series A led by Serra Ventures and including Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), and Flyover Capital.
This was followed in September 2017 when the company closed on $9.7 million of a $15.7 million Series B led by Maumee Ventures, the venture arm launched by Ohio-based grain handling company The Andersons in 2015, and including iSelect Fund, Flyover Capital, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), and Serra Ventures. At the same time Agrible announced it had entered into a global partnership with Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev) with the goal of improving global barley production while reducing its impact on the environment.
Ab InBev and Agrible began collaborating in 2016 on a project that uses crop modeling and predictive analytics to forecast barley yields and quality. Expanding upon this foundation, Agrible and AB InBev began working together to develop sustainability metrics for water usage, land efficiency, and to track the carbon footprint generated from growing and sourcing ingredients.
“We are very excited to form this relationship with AB InBev to continue bringing world class software, predictive analytics, and expertise to farmers everywhere,” says Chris Harbourt, CEO of Agrible at the time. “Our insights can truly change the face of agriculture across the globe and help companies of all sizes capture efficiencies and make their operations more sustainable.”
A Channel to Success
Today, Agrible’s partnerships with leading food and beverage retailers have been a key factor gaining the attention of Nutrien Ag Solutions.
“Agrible has developed a very impressive set of digital agronomic and sustainability tools which can be immediately incorporated into our existing digital platform,” commented Mike Frank, president of Nutrien Ag Solutions. “Agrible has also developed an industry leading sustainable ag platform and solution, developed through strong partnerships with some of the world’s most prominent food and beverage companies. We are excited to welcome Agrible’s talented team to Nutrien Ag Solutions’ digital organization and to expand our presence into Champaign, Illinois.”
For Agrible, a connection with an ag retail leader such as Nutrien is seen as a critical path to growth and a move that speaks to the validity of its strategy.
“We have a strong fundamental belief that the most effective means of scaling and delivering the value of Agrible’s tools is by leveraging and empowering the important role that agricultural retailers play in supporting growers’ ability to sustainably maximize crop production,” said Miller.
-Lynda Kiernan