Paul Finnerty is well known in agricultural and food circles as the former CEO of ABP Food Group. He will be speaking at the conference in his new role as chair of the Yield Lab, Ireland. The Yield Lab is an agriculture technology firm and business accelerator based in St Louis, Missouri, the centre of the agricultural heartland of the United States.

Agriculture business accelerators were unheard of in Ireland a few years ago but are becoming more widespread across the globe. In the last 12 months, two different types have been launched: the Yield Lab and also the Pearse Lyons Altech accelerator (see story on opposite page).

The idea for the Yield Lab became a reality in 2014 with a vision of helping to address growing global food security concerns. Thad Simons, the former CEO of NOVUS International, joined forces with Cultivation Capital to create the Yield Lab after seeing more and more deals flow within the agricultural sector.

9bn by 2050

With the world population expected to reach over 9bn by the year 2050, the Yield Lab believes that innovations in agriculture technology will provide the solution to feeding a growing population, which will place more stress on the agricultural production system.

The Yield Lab invests in early stage ag-tech companies that have innovative solutions to increase the world food supply.

“As the food sustainability agenda grows in importance internationally, I feel that the Yield Lab’s focus on ag-tech is of considerable importance and an opportunity for the agri-industry, both in Ireland and internationally,” said Paul Finnerty.

Already, the Yield Lab in St Louis is establishing a notable track record of success in its first two years in the United States. All of their previous cohort companies are still in business, and those companies have gone on to independently raise, in the aggregate, almost $20m in follow-on capital,” said Paul.

He joined Yield Lab, Ireland, as both chair and an investor and is looking forward to exploring the opportunities where he can provide value. “We seek to use the resources, experience and methodologies of the Yield Lab approach to help selected companies realise their potential and grow into industry leaders,” said Paul.

As chair, Paul will guide the strategic direction and development of the Yield Lab Ireland and provide mentorship and network access to the Yield Lab, Ireland’s, cohort companies. The Yield Lab, Ireland, intends to leverage Ireland’s proximity to European early stage agriculture technologies, agricultural production and market access.

first call competed

Yield lab Ireland has just completed its first call for companies and received over 150 applications from 36 different countries. They are in the process of selecting the successful companies that will go through a programme for two days a month in Galway, based around the successful recipe that has worked in the US.

The Yield Lab was originally designed as a nine-month accelerator programme, meeting two days every month. This allows the high-potential start-ups have substantial time to continue to run their business and take advantage of resources introduced to them during Yield Lab programming.

The companies can be expected to receive €50,000 to €100,000 in capital investment, accelerator services and a dedicated managing director to provide lead mentorship during the programme.

Mentorship does not stop at the conclusion of the accelerator programme.

The Yield Lab maintains board observer rights and an ongoing relationship with each portfolio company, to continue to ensure that they are provided with the necessary resources to adjust to changing business climates.