Farmers2Founders are wrapping up for 2023, and what an exhilarating year it’s been! This year saw 55 graduates from across 8 different programs, 12 exciting national events, 2 inspiring visits from UK AgTech Startup cohorts, 6 diverse individuals join the F2F team, and so much more!
The team wasted no time in scouring the country for the next group of up & coming agtech entrepreneurs and startup ecosystem builders;. evokeAG was FINALLY back, so February saw the team descend on Adelaide for an immersive week of agriculture, technology, startups, and fun. The highlights included seeing so many of the F2F team on the big stage - Christine championing First Nations involvement, Ben discussing technology adoption and our very own Future Young Leader, Matt Anderson, reminding us not to “leave the farmers behind”, but rather putting them at the centre of industry innovation. We loved connecting with our alumni and meeting ‘old friends’ for the first time in 3D after Covid - it was the motivational start to the year the industry needed!
During the following months, the team turned its attention to every corner of the industry that posed opportunities, with Program Managers getting down to business in supporting over 50 agtech startups through F2F pathways; Individuals and teams learned the fundamentals of how to launch and scale a startup always a proud moment for the F2F team to witness the progress of the startups as they pitched their hearts out at graduation.
September brought together 7 of our inspiring Alumni, as they headed to the Henty Fields & Machinery Days event for 3 days of “fun in the sun” as each startup showcased their innovative business, connected with new customers, and shared their knowledge in thought provoking panel discussions - but the world of Ag never sleeps, and the excitement didn’t end there!
November crept up out of nowhere and saw the innovators of Tamworth spark their keen minds as they participated in a Hackathon that focussed on solving some of the biggest problems faced by Farmers and Producers in our landscape today. This jam packed full day event ended with a bang as we, along with the Regional Angel Investor Network (RAIN) hosted a Pitch to Paddock event that opened audiences minds up to new technologies including ‘Weecan’, a startup that’s turning human waste into a secure source of safe agriculture fertiliser, ‘Athena IR-Tech’ who are measuring precipitation of growing produce to optimise water usage, and ‘Drone Hand’, revolutionising livestock monitoring, plus more!
Innovation challenges, Smartfarm visits, investor collabs, and most importantly connecting and supporting diverse startups along their startup journey towards international success - it’s been a thrilling year, and we can’t wait to share the exciting events and initiatives that lie ahead in 2024!
--- Coming up in 2024 ---
An agrifood tech accelerator pathway that supports entrepreneurs and startups from early stage ideas and validation, through to growing and scaling their ventures.
For aspiring Victorian women entrepreneurs looking to test, validate and launch agtech startups to solve problems on farms and for the industry. The program will equip with you the tools, resources and community to build a successful agtech startup.
Supported by Grains Research & Development Corporation, TEKLAB Grains is a grains focused agtech accelerator pathway that supports entrepreneurs and startups from early stage ideas and validation, through to growing and scaling their ventures.