2021 IoT Start-up Tracker: Digital Agriculture

Need for Increased Productivity and Resource Optimization Creates New Growth Opportunities

The digital agriculture industry is increasingly focused on improving productivity and driving sustainability through radical innovation and digital transformation.

This Start-up Tracker is a resource to help the ecosystem participants identify solution providers with offerings that match industry challenges.

The Tracker provides a rich database of Start-up and niches players that have the capabilities to transform processes in agriculture and add value to the end-user. These companies were selected based on a proprietary best practices database, in addition to secondary research on AgTech ecosystem mappings and rankings worldwide, such as the AgTech landscape tracker from 'The Mixing Bowl', the Forbes Most Innovative AgTech Start-ups and other regional AgTech mapping and rankings.

A list of Start-ups focused on agricultural IoT was made by region, including different segments: precision agronomics, smart animal husbandry, smart farm equipment and smart forestry.

The analyst conducted detailed primary interviews with Start-ups that are standing out in precision agronomics in different regions to generate a competitive profile and understand relevant developments, strategy and value proposition. Precision agronomics was chosen because it is the segment with the most innovative solutions in the digital agriculture industry.

Each company short-listed has been screened and analyzed by the analyst, and an overall score was established for each Start-up based on the criteria described in this study.

To be considered a part of the IoT, any product, application, or service must be part of a larger solution that comprises these 4 elements:

• Objects that are virtualized and imbued with data measurement capabilities
• The ability to grant identities to physical and virtual objects
• Interconnections between these objects for monitoring and interaction
• The ability to generate real-time insights from data and incorporate them into existing business processes

The Internet of Things (IoT) space is still in flux. Unlike more mature ICT verticals, the IoT space also has significant overlap with other industries such as the automotive, energy, and manufacturing industries.

To accurately observe and measure IoT-related economic activity, the analyst uses the definition above to determine if a technology product, application, or service is to be considered part of the IoT.

The key digital agriculture products covered in this study are automation and control systems, wireless connectivity and sensors, and smart agricultural equipment and machinery. The key segments covered in this study are smart animal husbandry, smart farm equipment, precision agronomics and smart forestry. Smart animal husbandry monitors the health and condition of livestock. Precision agronomics corresponds to accurately plant and grow crops, dispense fertilizers and monitor soil quality. Smart farm equipment deploys and track farm equipment and vehicular assets. Smart forestry manages forests and logging operations in a sustainable manner.