New €20m fund for agricultural research and innovation

A new €20 million fund for agricultural research and innovation has been announced by the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF).

The “Ireland AgTech Fund (IAF)” will invest in start-up and early stage AgTech companies that can “generate significant economic impact” in the Irish agriculture and food sectors.

The scheme involves a partnership between the ISIF and California-based AgTech group Finistere Ventures.

Finistere also announced plans to open its first European office in Dublin to accelerate its investment and market penetration in the Republic and the EU.

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Finistere's Kieran Furlong said the group wanted the Republic to be "a hub for European AgTech".

"All the ingredients are here - a longstanding, export-oriented agri-food industry; world-leading research at Irish universities and institutions such as Teagasc; and, of course, the thriving IT, biopharma and medtech sectors," he said.

“AgTech is essentially the combination of all of these, so we see great potential for start-ups here.”

ISIF head of food and agricultural investments Cathal Fitzgerald said agriculture and food technology was a "significant, high-potential growth area" for the Irish economy.

“Finistere has a global reputation in what is still a very specialised area of venture investing and its decision to locate its first EU office in Dublin is a significant vote of confidence in Ireland’s Agri-food credentials,” he said.

“The IAF has strong potential to deliver a commercial return on our investment, stimulate the growth of the Irish AgTech sector at large, and support the commercialisation of the State’s significant investment in this sector.”