AgriNovus launches next Innovation Challenge
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AgriNovus Indiana is launching the next iteration of its annual Producer-Led Innovation Challenge. This year’s challenge focuses on advancing technology that improves net farm income.
The not-for-profit initiative focused on growing Indiana’s agbioscience economy says the goal of the challenge is to find new ways to “create new revenue streams from current on-farm processes to increase efficiency and return on investment for producers’ operations.”
The seven-week accelerator is open to companies, entrepreneurs, students and innovators who will complete for a $25,000 grand prize.
AgriNovus said in a news release that the challenge will largely focus on digital innovation in four key areas: trackability and traceability for premium products; accessing and leveraging sustainability and environmental practices; developing supply chains for byproduct and waste products; and operational enhancement and risk mitigation.
The challenge is being launched in partnership with the Indiana Corn Marketing Council and Indiana Soybean Alliance.
“The most successful innovations start with the problem you’re aiming to solve,” said Courtney Kingery, CEO of Indiana Corn Marketing Council and Indiana Soybean Alliance. “New technologies that allow farmers to tap into additional revenue streams by monetizing their current practices is key for family-owned farms’ success allowing them to feed and fuel a growing world.”
In addition to the grand prize, the top participating student team will receive a $4,000 prize from West Lafayette-based Dial Ventures, an ag-tech accelerator that is a part of Purdue Applied Research Institute.
The 2022 Producer-Led Innovation Challenge tasked innovators with optimizing existing on-farm data to create a farmer-focused platform that will increase data accuracy and reliability to impact speed and cost of capital from lenders.
The challenge was won by Illinois-based Aker Technologies Inc., which was later acquired by Indianapolis-based precision agriculture startup Intelinair Inc. in April.
You can learn more about the 2023 Producer-Led Innovation Challenge by clicking here. The deadline to register is Sept. 30.