Agritech startups offer suite of solutions
Agritech startups offer suite of solutions
Agritech startups are gaining the attention of venture capitalists, constantly securing new funding to scale up operations in Vietnam.
Farmers want the ability to adopt more sustainable and productive techniques, photo Le Toan |
In late December, Enfarm, which leverages AI and the Internet of Things to optimise crop nutrition, wrapped up an undisclosed investment in its seed funding round led by Touchstone Partners alongside Aiviet Venture and Conservation Vietnam. This marks a significant milestone for Enfarm, as it will fuel the startup’s growth across several fronts.
As part of efforts to improve the farmer experience, Enfarm is committed to making its platform even more user-friendly. This means investing heavily in enhancing the user interface to ensure that it is intuitive and easy for farmers to use. Concurrently, the startup is expanding its AI capabilities to support a wider range of crops and provide farmers with more precise and actionable insights.
This funding will also enable Enfarm to significantly scale up its marketing efforts. The startup plans to reach more farmers and agribusinesses throughout the country, educating them about the detrimental effects of over-fertilisation and showcasing how technology can help them improve their yields, reduce costs, and protect the environment.
To ensure consistent high quality and cost-effectiveness, Enfarm will strategically partner with an original equipment manufacturer in Vietnam. This partnership will streamline its manufacturing processes and enable it to scale up operations efficiently while maintaining high-quality standards.
Enfarm co-founder and CEO Dzung Do Nguyen said, “Farmers face a constant battle against uncertainty, from fluctuating market prices to unpredictable weather. Our mission is to empower them with knowledge and tools to mitigate these risks. We’ve taken a leap forward by combining cutting-edge soil sensing technology with powerful AI. This allows us to provide farmers with highly accurate yield forecasts and real-time market price updates, specifically for coffee in our current app.”
In December, agritech startup Techcoop raised $70 million in a Series A funding round, including $30 million in equity and $40 million from banks and global debt investors.
The funds aim to develop and add value to an agricultural customer ecosystem for small and medium-sized enterprises and cooperatives in Vietnam. This will be achieved through infrastructure and technology platforms for payment operations and market access, targeting high-quality export markets such as the United States, Europe, and Japan.
With revenue of $75 million in 2024, and targets of $150 million in 2025 and $360 million in 2026, supported by a network and ecosystem of 2,000 customers and partners, Techcoop aspires to deliver integrated technology solutions and contribute to agriculture’s $100 billion export goal by 2030.
The company has developed a suite of tailored technology solutions specifically designed for small businesses, addressing practical needs to meet domestic standards and expand towards international requirements.
Nguyen Ngoc Thanh, head of Corporate Development and Strategy at Techcoop, said, “Recognising significant untapped potential for technology adoption and value chain digitalisation in agriculture, the company focuses on solutions, digitised payment systems, and digitalisation of processing facilities to enhance competitiveness, reduce losses, and improve productivity.”
In May 2024, Singapore’s agritech platform Rize secured a $14 million Series A funding round to support its expansion into Vietnam, Indonesia, and across South and Southeast Asia.
Rize CEO Dhruv Sawhney said, “Vietnamese smallholder farmers face significant challenges such as lack of access to precise data and high input costs, which hinder their ability to adopt more sustainable and productive farming techniques. As an agritech startup, we see these challenges not just as obstacles but as opportunities. Our goal is to enhance productivity, reduce environmental impact, and improve economic stability for farmers.”
According to data updated by Tracxn in January, the business-to-business agritech sector in Vietnam comprises 80 companies, including eight funded companies. Out of these, two have reached Series A or higher, and one startup to Series B or beyond.
Tu Ngo, general partner of Touchstone Partners, which backs Enfarm and Forte Biotech, said, “For Vietnam, we have identified several potential climate tech areas, including sustainable agriculture and food systems. With Vietnam being a top global agricultural produce exporter, innovations that enhance sustainability in agriculture and food systems present significant opportunities.”
However, there are many things that need to be done to develop Vietnam’s agritech ecosystem.
Nguyen from Enfarm said, “While a nascent ecosystem already exists, driven by the collaborative efforts of individual companies, a more robust and supportive environment is crucial. The government plays a vital role in fostering this ecosystem. To accelerate technology adoption, the government should implement programmes to verify and certify new agritech solutions.”
