Page 27 - Vol.36-No.8 issue

ABU DHABI’S AGTECH ECOSYSTEM

ABU DHABI’S AGTECH ECOSYSTEM

EXPANDS ACROSS LAND, SEA AND SPACE

ture value chain and this is producing a one of the pioneering champions in the
compounding effect that is benefiting region’s emerging AgTech sector, this
farmers, innovators and companies in commitment will give us the resources
our region and beyond.” we need to drive and expand our R&D
capabilities and will position us for
Pure Harvest, FreshToHome and international expansion from our stra-
Nanoracks have been awarded finan- tegic base in Abu Dhabi. This partner-
cial and non-financial incentives to ship further demonstrates how com-
expand operations in Abu Dhabi. The mitted the government is in supporting
competitive incentive packages in- and enabling innovative technology
clude rebates on innovation-linked companies, providing them with the
Three innovative agriculture compa- high-skilled payroll, high-tech CAPEX, tools, resources and support to thrive
nies will develop cutting-edge projects as well as land, utility and intellectual and make a large-scale impact in the
in Abu Dhabi to boost the emirate’s ag- property support. region.”
riculture technology (AgTech) capa- Since the beginning of 2020, ADIO
bilities across land, sea and space. The has attracted seven AgTech companies FreshToHome is an e-grocery plat-
Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) to Abu Dhabi, each bringing a com- form for fresh, chemical-free produce.
announced today individual partner- plementary skill to expand the eco- The company maintains complete con-
ships with Pure Harvest Smart Farms system. ADIO’s new partnerships with trol over its supply chain, inventory and
(Pure Harvest), FreshToHome and Na- Pure Harvest, FreshToHome and Nano- logistics by obtaining produce directly
noracks that will see the companies racks will build on the achievements from the source through an AI-pow-
receive financial and non-financial in- made by AeroFarms, Madar Farms, RNZ ered auction process. ADIO’s partner-
centives totaling AED 152 million (USD and RDI, the AgTech pioneers ADIO ship will aid the expansion of FreshTo-
41 million). The research and technol- partnered with earlier this year to es- Home’s land and sea operational and
ogies developed by these companies tablish R&D and production facilities in processing capabilities in the UAE,
will expand existing capabilities in Abu Dhabi. bringing expertise in aquaculture,
Abu Dhabi’s AgTech ecosystem and contract farming for marine and fresh-
promote innovation in the sector to ad- Partnerships with Pure water fish species and precision agri-
dress global food security challenges. culture to Abu Dhabi. It will also invest
Harvest, FreshToHome, in innovative fish farming technologies
The new partnerships are a contin- and cold chain.
uation of ADIO’s efforts to accelerate Nanoracks
the growth of Abu Dhabi’s AgTech eco- Shan Kadavil, CEO and Co-Found-
system through the AgTech Incentive Pure Harvest is a home-grown, er of FreshToHome, said: “At FreshTo-
Programme, which was established tech-enabled farming venture that uses Home we use cutting-edge research in
under Ghadan 21, Abu Dhabi’s accel- cutting-edge food production systems AI and precision aquaculture for fur-
erator programme. The Programme is to grow fresh fruits and vegetables thering food security in a sustainable
open to both local and international in a climate-controlled environment, manner while also giving better value
AgTech companies. The partnerships enabling year-round production an- to consumers, fishermen and farmers.
follow ADIO’s AED 367 million (USD ywhere, while using seven times less To this end, we intend to bring our US
100 million) investment earlier this water compared to traditional farming patent pending AI-powered Virtual
year to bring four AgTech pioneers – methods. Pure Harvest will invest in Commodities Exchange technology,
AeroFarms, Madar Farms, RNZ and Re- smart farming and infrastructure tech- our e-grocery platform and our nano
sponsive Drip Irrigation (RDI) – to the nologies at its new farms in Al Ain, Abu farm aquaculture technology to Abu
emirate to develop next-generation Dhabi, to optimise growing conditions Dhabi, enhancing food production and
agriculture solutions in arid and desert through hardware design innovations, distribution for the region. ADIO has
climates. artificial intelligence, autonomous been a terrific partner to us and we are
H.E. Dr. Tariq Bin Hendi, Director growing and robotics, plant science thankful for their support in helping us
be part of the vision.”
General of ADIO, said: “Abu Dhabi is research and desert-optimised ma-
pressing ahead at full steam with our chines. The company will also progress US-based Nanoracks is the single
mission to ‘turn the desert green’ and R&D and deployment of a commer- largest commercial user of the Inter-
solve long-term global food securi- cial-scale algae bioreactor production national Space Station and is build-
ty issues. We have created an envi- facility that will grow higher quality, ing the first-ever commercial AgTech
ronment where innovative ideas can healthier Omega-3 fatty acids without space research programme. Nano-
flourish and this has enabled the rapid the limitations and challenges of tradi- racks’ ‘StarLab Space Farming Center’
expansion of our AgTech sector. Inno- tional animal sources. in Abu Dhabi will be a commercial
vations from the companies we part- Sky Kurtz, Co-Founder and CEO of space research facility focused on ad-
nered with earlier this year are already Pure Harvest, said: “We are delighted vancing knowledge and technology
propelling the growth of Abu Dhabi’s to have received the support of ADIO for organisms and food produced in
24,000 farms. Partnering with Pure to further invest in our home-grown, space and in equally extreme climates
Harvest, FreshToHome and Nanoracks innovative growing solutions. It also on Earth. The space-based technology
adds a realm of new capabilities to the serves as a powerful endorsement of will be applied to desert agriculture to
ecosystem across land, sea and space.” our business case and mission as we address pressing environmental and
Bin Hendi continued: “We are driving pursue innovation to address food se- food security challenges and to benefit
long-term human space exploration.
innovation across the entire agricul- curity locally and internationally. As
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