February 11, 2022

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

Nearly 100 limited partners, many of which are also backers of Serra Ventures’ prior funds, have brought the Serra Capital Ag Tech Fund to where it is today, closing on $45 million in capital commitments. 

“The Serra team is very encouraged with the great show of support from our core base of limited partners as well as several investors that are new to us,” said Rob Schultz, managing partner, Serra Ventures. “To see the number of institutional investors joining the growing list of Serra limited partners means the world to us. We’re truly grateful.”

With the support of corporate and institutional investors such as AgriFab, Otterbox, Mons Investment, BuseyBank, and the Illinois Growth and Innovation Fund, the Serra Capital Ag Tech Fund has a goal to continue investing throughout 2022 and 2023, to fund a total of 25 companies.

At this point, after its inaugural year, the fund has a portfolio of nine investments including:

iUNU – A comprehensive greenhouse management platform.

Vytelle –  a precision livestock company that announced an oversubscribed $13.2 million Series A co-led by the Open Prairie Rural Opportunities Fund and Fulcrum Global Capital. 

DroneSeed – Using Drone swarms, DroneSeed plant tree seed vessels on a per-acre basis after a wildfire, resulting in the creation of ex-ante carbon credits that are sold to corporations seeking carbon neutrality.

Hypercell Technology – Using tools to control infection diseases in animals, Hypercell believes that the best way to stop future pandemics in humans is through prevention by controlling viruses in animal reservoirs.

Provision Analytics – A software provider that uses simple digital forms to automate food safety and quality control factors.

Veritas Substrates – Supplier of proprietary substrates for vertical, indoor, and potted farming operations resulting in increased yields and a reduced carbon footprint.

Earth Optics – A company using ground-penetrating radar to build a global soil cloud providing unmatched insights into soil health and management.

Barn2Door – A vertical SaaS platform helping farmers save time and grow sales through better online inventory automating across the web, social, mobile, and email platforms.

The team at Serra Ventures has been immersed in the agtech space for years, deploying its first capital in 2010. Based on their experience and seeing a steady increase in both the number and quality of agtech deals in its pipeline, as well as the impressive exits of other portfolio companies that have been executed, such as Agrible, 640 Labs, and Label Insight, the Serra Ventures team knew that the right decision was to create a standalone fund with a focus on agtech and agrifood technologies.

“Serra has enjoyed a decade of success in venture with a series of multi-sector, early-stage focused funds,” commented Tim Hoerr, managing partner, Serra Ventures. “As our first sector-specific vehicle, the Serra Capital Ag Tech Fund has resonated profoundly with the investment community. It’s a sector that touches each of our lives every single day. To support the companies that are bringing the most innovative solutions to the most pressing problems in agriculture and food is extremely gratifying.”

The Serra team is continuing to watch market trends and gathering front-line data, with the belief that the next 5-7 years will usher in the most significant revolution in the application of technologies to the most serious challenges being faced by the ag and food sectors.

“We are seeing exceptional deal flow, as we expected,” said Dennis Beard, managing partner, Serra Ventures. “In 2021, over $12 billion was invested by venture firms in the ag tech sector, a 137 percent increase from 2020. This is a great indication of the significant number of high-quality ag tech and agri-food tech companies that are attracting investors.”

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– Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and  Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Group’s Oilseed & Grain News. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.