AgTech and Genomics Pioneer Pattern Ag Closes $35M Funding Round
Pattern Ag, Inc. has announced a $35 million funding round led by Conti Ventures, joined by Bidra Innovations.
Existing investors also participated in the ag tech leader’s Series B round, including The Production Board, Valor Capital Group, Founders Fund, iSelect, LAUNCH and Ospraie Ag Sciences.
Pattern’s breakthrough metagenomics platform provides data-driven, evidence-based, long-term predictions about crop risks and nutrient deficiencies at scale in row crops. Pattern’s biological analytics service gives farmers actionable insight into the ways in which their soil biology impacts their on-farm outcomes.
Pattern provides predictive soil analytics that track pest, pathogen, biofertility, and nutrient levels for corn and soybean growers across the Midwest. These analytics help farmers predict and plan crop protection, seed selection, and fertility decisions for the upcoming season, and boost profits by $60+ per acre by increasing yields and controlling input costs.
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“Pattern understands the power of focus for early-stage enterprises. By aiming their platform technology at key customer pain points in corn and soybean crops, they have built a practical product that helps farmers increase their profitability. We are excited to help them continue to build a full stack predictive agronomy product on their metagenomic platform which starts with biological activity in the soil,” noted Chris Abbott, Co-Head of Conti Ventures and new member of the Pattern Board of Directors.
The Series B round brings 4-year-old Pattern’s total funding to $60M and helps expand Pattern’s intellectual property portfolio – which already includes the largest soil metagenomics dataset in the global agriculture industry.
“Building a computational platform for agriculture starts with data,” said Rob Hranac, CEO of Pattern. “Thanks to our customers, we have built the largest soil metagenomics dataset in agriculture. Ultimately, this data will drive the next generation of machine learning for predictive product placement in farms globally.”
Getting the most out of your soil
Pattern will be serving thousands of growers across the United States this year, with more than one million acres to be sampled. Pattern has enabled their customers to refine management decisions by providing actionable insights, and customizable recommendations on an intuitive platform.
“Pattern’s results shocked us. Sudden Death Syndrome in soybeans is not usually a concern, so we don’t typically treat it. When we saw how high our field pressure was for SDS, it was a red flag for us. We are used to getting 70 bushel an acre soybeans, but with this new information, and treating for a disease we didn’t even know we had, this may push us to 75 or 80 bushel an acre beans,” says Paul Sittig, Amber View Farms of South Dakota.
Just as genomics technology is rapidly becoming the front-line diagnostic test in human health, Pattern is applying these same genomics techniques to understanding plant health. For farmers, this means that they now can apply precision agricultural techniques to their agronomic input selection.
“Soils are a massive natural carbon sink, second only to oceans,” said David Friedberg, founder of The Climate Corporation and The Production Board. “Because of this, healthy soils are critical not just for food production, but also for climate change mitigation. Pattern is generating the information architecture that will enhance the microbiome to simultaneously optimize short-term agricultural yields and long-term global soil health.”
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