A fundamental disconnect between venture capital firms and AgTech startups, in part due to long development cycles, is damaging Australia’s prospects of leading the global charge for change in food systems.
That was the message from some of Australia’s flourishing AgTech startups at the Southstart festival in Adelaide this week amid a “funding apocalypse”, particularly as companies move beyond the seed funding stage.
Since its peak during the pandemic, global AgTech funding has collapsed, dropping 54 per cent between 2021 and 2024 – the equivalent of $6.1 billion. In Australia, just $96 million was invested in AgTech in 2023.
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