Corteva Agriscience, ADM, Elanco, Ecolab, Griffith Foods, RD Offutt, Growmark, Koch Ag & Energy, Smithfield Foods and Sumitomo Chemical America all backed the VC firm's latest fund.
US-based venture capital firm Cultivian Sandbox Ventures closed its third fund at $135m on Tuesday, having secured commitments from limited partners including several corporate backers.
Cultivian Sandbox Food & Agriculture Fund III’s LPs include food processor Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), hygiene services provider Ecolab, food ingredient developer Griffith Foods, potato producer RD Offutt and Corteva Agriscience, a subsidiary of speciality chemicals and materials provider DowDuPont.
Agricultural cooperative Growmark, energy and chemicals conglomerate Koch Ag & Energy Solutions, animal health product maker Elanco, pork product supplier Smithfield Foods and Sumitomo Chemical America, a chemicals production subsidiary of diversified group Sumitomo, also provided capital.
Founded in 2008, Cultivian Sandbox invests in early-stage startups that positively impact the food and agriculture landscape.
The fund will focus on companies developing technologies intended to increase food production, improve food safety, increase sustainability and reduce the use of products such as fertilisers or other chemicals.
Food & Agriculture Fund III has so far invested in online produce marketplace Full Harvest, supply chain data analytics developer Phylagen and collagen protein developer Geltor.
Neal Gutterson, senior vice-president and chief technology officer for Corteva Agriscience, said: “We value the experience of the Cultivian team, and their engagement with us as fund investors.
“Cultivian continues to be an [agriculture] and food industry thought leader, providing us with forward-leaning visibility into promising technologies for better meeting the needs of farmers and consumers.”