April 13, 2016

Vancouver-based Semios, a precision ag company and provider of real-time intelligence designed to mitigate the risks of pest damage for growers of tree fruits, nuts, and grapes, has raised $8 million in equity financing. The fund was sponsored by a consortium of private equity agtech investors led by Reid Carter, head of Brookfield Asset Management’s timberland investment organization, who recently was appointed a seat on the Semios Board.

“Semios continues to demonstrate an exceptional level of innovation and functionality in its precision farming platform and is now at a stage where more resources will help meet the exponential growth in demand for operational deployment,” Carter said in a Semios press release.

Founded in 2010, Semios has become the largest global network of sensors and devices for specialty crops, claiming to have over 200% annual growth for its platform according to Cantech Letter.  The Semios platform provides real-time intelligence allowing for the improved and more efficient usage of irrigation systems and frost prevention systems, while monitoring the number of pests and their flight strength, wind direction and patterns, and temperature for the more efficient use of pheromones.

Semios plans to use the fresh capital to support its R&D initiatives, to support the launch of new services including new non-toxic and species-specific aerosol pheromone formulas, to improve its data analytics, and to increase sales.

“We are at a pivotal point in the company’s growth with more than 50,000 sensors deployed and over 10,000 acres under management,” said Michael Gilbert, founder and CEO of Semios. “Adoption of our platform is accelerating and our growers are asking for more features and services. With this new level of investor expertise and confidence, we’ll be able to expand the platform and accelerate the growth of our business.”

The announcement of this round follows closely upon the announcement by Halifax-based drone company SkySquirrel of its successful close on a $1 million early stage investment round which was equally led by Nova Scotia-based venture capital firm, Innovacorp and an unnamed Ontario-based private investor. Also focused on permanent crops, SkySquirrel serves the $85 billion winemaking industry through its flagship product that encompasses multi-spectral imaging equipment tailored for a drone platform, a cloud-based image-processing service that delivers data to the end-user, and an unmanned aircraft system. The company is able to aid commercial vineyards in reducing costs and vine loss, while improving yields through the early detection of aggressive viruses that specifically target vineyards including leafroll disease and flavescence doree, that often leave a producer no other option but to rip out affected vines before the virus spreads to surrounding plantings.