July 5, 2023

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

By leveraging technology, Amsterdam-based Source.ag intends to democratize access to sufficient fruits and vegetables through AI-driven greenhouses, which the startup stated is a safer, more reliable, and climate-resilient method of production.

Founded in November 2020 by CEO Rien Kamman and CTO Ernst van Bruggen, the startup’s proprietary algorithms generate a digital twin of a greenhouse facility, simulating plant behavior to determine and execute optimal cultivation strategies by taking into account millions of data points on climate, biology, and resources. This pioneering tech platform can be tailored to specific cultivars, making greenhouse production more accessible, profitable, and globally scalable by enabling more growers to operate more facilities.

And in only the last 12 months, the company has increased its number of users by tenfold, partnering with the world’s leading growers to increase vegetable yields amid the challenges of climate change and a global energy crisis. 

Through these partnerships, Source.ag noted that it is driving safe, reliable, and climate-resilient food production on a global scale, adding that greenhouse agriculture produces up to 15 times higher yields without the need for arable land and uses up to 20 times less water compared to traditional farming methods. 

“Our technology provides growers with real-time, highly tailored advice on how to optimally grow their crops, and we support them in running a successful growing operation,” said Rien Kamman, CEO and co-founder, Source.ag. 

European greenhouse vegetable producers also have certain advantages over intensive vertical farming startups, which can see initial investment requirements that are up to 10 times higher compared to the capital required for high-tech greenhouses, according to the paper, Vertical Farming in Europe, Present Status and Outlook, by Michele Butturini and L.F.M. Marcells, Wageningen University and Research, published in January 2019.

“Greenhouse vegetable producers often have established relationships with food distributors and are high-efficiency operators,” noted the authors. “Therefore, they may compete with vertical farms, instead of complement, for the same market, especially in regions or countries with a high concentration of greenhouses, like the Netherlands.”

In March of this year the company announced it had raised $23 million through a Series A led by Astanor Ventures that included Acre Venture Partners, and several leading greenhouse operators in the Netherlands. 

Now, only four months later, the company has extended this funding round, raising an additional $4 million from SK Networks through its U.S. investment arm Hico Capital and existing investor MIT-affiliated E14 Fund, bringing the total raised through the round to $27 million. 

By enabling more growers to operate more facilities through cutting-edge technology, Source.ag stated that it is making greenhouse agriculture more accessible, profitable, and scalable. This greater level of efficiency is more critical than ever, as 70 percent of global freshwater withdrawals are for food production, and 46 percent of the world’s habitable land is dedicated to agriculture. 

“The global demand for greenhouse agriculture is rising, but its growth is being hindered by the shortage of experienced growers and unprecedented economic and climate-based challenges,” said Rien Kamman, CEO and co-founder, Source.ag.

“We are proud to partner with Dutch master growers to create an AI platform that will empower growers globally and optimize their crops’ growth in the short and long term. We are excited to complete our Series A financing with a final $4 million investment from SK networks made through its U.S. investment corporation Hico Capital and the MIT-affiliated E14 fund, and will continue to use these funds to bring ground breaking products to market for growers globally.’’

The company said that these additional funds will help accelerate its product development, adding that it plans to introduce further groundbreaking AI products later this year. It also will help the company expand its AI to support even more crop types and farming methods. 

“Source.ag has solidified its position as a prominent player in the Netherlands, a pioneering country in smart farming,” said a spokesperson from SK Networks. “As a startup with a scalable SaaS model, it holds immense potential for successful expansion into the global market.”

~ Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor in chief 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 Unconventional Ag. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.

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