Farming is an expensive business. To minimize costs, start with a clear idea of what kind of small farm you want to run.

Research your market and the product you plan to sell. Consider community sourcing and keeping your customer base local. Also, investigate grants and finance options.

eAgronom, an agtech startup helping farmers adopt more sustainable farming methods through digital tools and technology-based strategies, has announced it raised €5 million in a new funding round. The investment comes from investors Icos Capital, Soulmates Ventures and SmartCap Green Fund, the latter funded by the resources of the European Union’s recovery plan – NextGenerationEU.

Following the initial successes of its carbon credit program and its GHG monitoring and data measurement technologies, the startup will direct the funds to scale this carbon program in Europe and Africa. In addition to the funding round, eAgronom received a dedicated grant from Enterprise Estonia in support of its product development and innovation.

“With this additional funding, we can continue our efforts to facilitate the transformation of farming practices, enabling them to manage their farms in a more sustainable manner, while simultaneously providing them with supplementary revenue streams and a chance to improve their soil conditions for the future. These steps are crucial in the global fight against climate change where we need to act rather sooner than later.” says Robin Saluoks, CEO of eAgronom.

Through its carbon credit income program for farmers, eAgronom balances sustainability and financial viability – both crucial to today’s agricultural businesses. eAgronom first measures and verifies farms’ carbon footprints using GHG monitoring, which enables them to create sustainability plans tailored to individual farms. To support this transition, the company then directly subsidises farmers implementing soil quality improvement, fertiliser and fuel use optimisation, and other practices. Carbon credits generated from these practices provide an additional revenue stream for farmers, making increased sustainability beneficial on all fronts. eAgronom already supports farmers across Spain, Poland, Romania, East Africa, and seven other markets.

“eAgronom represents exactly the kind of investment we’re always looking for. This is a forward-thinking yet deeply practical company that is tackling the most urgent challenges of the future with an emphasis on sophisticated technology, financial viability, and large-scale adoption. The carbon program is already proving attractive to eAgronom’s farmers, and we’re excited to see it expand with our support,” says Nityen Lal, Managing Partner of Icos Capital.

“eAgronom represents the philosophy of purpose-profit driven startups we are looking for. The well-experienced team at eAgronom delivers a complex data-driven solution, that combines three business streams into one platform, empowering farmers to leverage sustainable agriculture practices. Based on that, farmers’ income and food quality are increasing leaving behind undegraded soil without the excessive use of fertilisers. We are delighted to support eAgronom on their journey in tackling critical challenges and becoming global leader in the agtech market,” notes Michal Sikyta, Investment Manager of Soulmates Ventures.

“The global crises of recent years and the growing climate problems have shown us more and more acutely that it is necessary to develop sustainable ideas and technologies bolder and faster than before,” said Sille Pettai, Fund Manager and Member of the Board of SmartCap. “Investors, consumers, and society, in general, are already interested in technologies and solutions that help solve pressing global problems. Our aim is to transfer the continuation of the success story of Estonian technology companies also in the field of greentech, to see ambitious Estonian companies such as eAgronom achieving international success in creating greener, sustainable economies.”

Founded in 2016, eAgronom has grown into one of the biggest agtech companies in the Baltics. In February 2022, it raised €6.4 million. Robin Saluoks, its Founder and CEO spoke at the last EU-Startups Summit.

Source: eu-startups.com