Entrepreneurs See A New Field Of Dreams In Agriculture..

When it comes to technology investing, the smart money seeks big markets with strong growth prospects. That old adage helps explain why, out of $13.5 billion invested in start-up firms by venture capitalists in the fourth quarter of 2014, more than half went to firms developing software used on mobile devices, according to tracking firm CB Insights. After all, global sales of smartphones reached 1.2 billion last year, up 20% from 2013. Yet there’s another market so big it leaves mobile phones in the dust. The world’s farmers will need to feed 9.6 billion people by 2050, the United Nations says, and that will require a 70% increase in agricultural production. Agriculture is a $3 trillion industry increasingly driven by technology developments, but until recently it was practically ignored by venture capitalists. That’s now changing as start-ups targeting plant and animal health begin attracting backing from venture capital funds. Some are graduating to become publicly traded companies. In February, for example, the crop genetic traits developer Arcadia registered with the Securities & Exchange Commission to raise $86 million in an initial public offering of stock.continue