Agriculture Technology (AgTech) is essential to the efficiency, profitability and sustainability of farming and food production, especially as the sector faces a shortage of farmers, laborers, and investment. Although investment in AgTech in the past was not seen as favorable among climate VCs and financiers, the sector is now positioned for explosive growth in 2026 and beyond. Advancements in soil health, regenerative farming, B2B tech applications for surveillance and monitoring, crop yield and more continue to thrive. Read more below about the impact of AgTech PR making news and headlines across the country and world.
This Is Where the Smart Green Tech Money Is Heading in 2026 – Bloomberg
Some agtech subsectors, such as automation and precision farming, are likely to see investor support thanks to a persistent labor shortage and farmers’ desire to cut costs. But the funding environment is “really challenging” for many others in sustainable agriculture, said Josh Posamentier, managing partner and cofounder of Congruent Ventures.
Mergers and acquisitions for US crop farming plunged to zero in the first nine months of 2025 from $38 million a year ago, according to BNEF. That came after the sector’s M&A deals already plummeted by nearly 97% in dollar terms in 2024 from the 2023 levels.
How Investors Got Psyched About Fertilizer – Heatmap
Innovations in agriculture can seem like the neglected stepchild of the climate tech world. While food and agriculture account for about a quarter of global emissions, there’s not a lot of investment in the space — or splashy breakthroughs to make the industry seem that investible in the first place. In transportation and energy, “there is a Tesla, there is an EnPhase,” Cooper Rinzler, a partner at Breakthrough Energy Ventures, told me. “Whereas in ag tech, tell me when the last IPO that was exciting was?”
Studies estimate that fertilizer production and use alone account for roughly 5% of global emissions. That includes emissions from the energy-intensive Haber–Bosch process, which synthesizes ammonia by combining nitrogen from the air with hydrogen at extremely high temperatures, as well as nitrous oxide released from the soil after fertilizer is applied. N2O is about 265 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 100-year timeframe and accounts for roughly 70% of fertilizer-related emissions, as soil microbes convert excess nitrogen that crops can’t immediately absorb into nitrous oxide.
Efficiency, Not Yield, Emerges As Ag Tech’s Next Big ROI – Global Ag Tech Initiative
For decades, agricultural progress has been measured primarily through yield—more acres, higher bushels per acre, and increased output from existing inputs. But as markets contend with oversupply, rising input costs, and tight margins, incremental yield gains are delivering diminishing returns. In a recent AgriBusiness Global article, Jim Clark, Partner at Granite Creek Capital Partners, argues that the next wave of value creation in agriculture lies in operational efficiency rather than simply producing more.
Beyond financial returns, operational efficiency also delivers environmental benefits. Leaner operations consume fewer inputs, minimize transportation needs, and reduce seed disposal, contributing to sustainability goals. With ESG reporting increasingly expected by consumers and retailers, data-driven efficiency becomes a competitive advantage, documenting measurable improvements in both productivity and environmental impact.
AgTech Innovations Can Reduce Costs, Conserve Natural Resources – Wall Street Journal
Agriculture feeds billions of people, but it also feeds on natural resources and contributes to changing long-term weather patterns that can impact farming. With the global population rising and traditional farming under strain to meet demand, the use of advanced technologies in farming (Agtech) could be a game-changer.
By the numbers: A 2023 study by Deloitte and EDF+Business projects that precision agriculture tech solutions could abate 9.8 gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions between 2020 and 2050 while saving an estimated $40 billion – $100 billion in costs to farmers by 2030.5
‘What happens next is the real test’: a look back at agtech in 2025 – Ag Funder News
In the US, the biggest regen ag news of the year came in December when the USDA announced its $700 million Regenerative Agriculture Pilot program designed to help farmers transition to regen practices. Reactions ranged from hopes of faster financing for growers to concerns of greenwashing and a lack of funding going to smaller operations.
The increasingly crowded biostimulant market showed signs of maturity in 2025, while experts in the ag biologicals space pointed to a greater amount of differentiation between the many offerings vying for space in the market.
US AgTech capital drought continues, dairy and solar sectors offer bright spots – Reuters
The U.S. AgTech sector is navigating a challenging investment climate. Yet, amid the funding downturn, some companies are carving out growth opportunities, particularly in the dairy and solar sectors.
Macroeconomic headwinds, weak commodity prices and a sluggish agricultural cycle have weighed on funding and valuations in the agricultural technology sector that encompasses precision farming, biotech and data analytics, which help farmers grow food more efficiently.
On a trailing 12-month basis, precision agriculture registered $1.82 billion in deal value, with the ‘robotics and smart field equipment’ sub-sector seeing 48.5% value growth. “Roughly 40% of U.S. ag labor is likely undocumented,” said McKinsey’s Vasanth Ganesan. “This creates strong incentives for farmers to turn to robotics and automation.”
Insignum AgTech, a Purdue Strategic Ventures portfolio company, designed its first product to make corn visually react to fungal diseases like tar spot using natural pigments, turning leaves purple. The technology offers early warning signs as many as 10 days before visible symptoms appear, enabling farmers to make data driven decisions and treat their crops preventatively and more effectively.
Accelerating Agricultural Innovation in the Agentic Age – AgTechNavigator
Traditionally, ag production has heavily relied on manual labor but, in the agentic age, implementation of AI is driving a profound shift. As AI systems mature, they are trained on a vast amount of real-world data, creating a more holistic understanding of the farm ecosystem, and unlocking new possibilities for deploying computer vision and intelligent decision-making directly in the field.
Farmers in California are reshaping agriculture with cutting edge technologies – Marketplace
California is known for being home to Hollywood and, of course, the center of global tech, Silicon Valley. But the Golden State also has millions of acres of farmland, and we’re exploring how technology is changing that landscape.The Central Valley region is known as the “food basket of America” because it produces the majority of fruits, nuts and vegetables in the country. Agriculture is an unpredictable business, so using technology like artificial intelligence can help farmers to plan not just for the next season, but for an uncertain future for the whole industry, which is facing climate change and labor challenges.
UC ANR Receives $15.1 Million To Accelerate Ag Tech Innovation – University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources
The innovation program of the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources – has been awarded $15.1 million to launch the state’s first coordinated agricultural innovation network, connecting California’s diverse food-producing regions to accelerate technology, support entrepreneurs and prepare the workforce of the future. This award is part of $28.6 million in new Jobs First funding for California’s agricultural sector, with UC ANR leading the statewide agricultural innovation cluster. The cluster spans agtech and food systems investments designed to strengthen competitiveness and resilience across the state.
How will AgTech leaders create real world impact throughout 2026?
FischTank PR provides AgTech PR support for companies and innovators navigating technology development and commercialization. This includes those advancing technologies in land use, soil health, crop yield, biofuels and so many more. As a top climate tech and sustainability PR firm, FischTank PR works to simplify brand messaging, then engage and generate media coverage from impactful trade, broadcast, business, finance and top-tier media.
If you’re interested in securing exposure for your brand, reach out to us at [email protected].
***News roundup guest post from FischTank PR interns Abby Collins and Candace Guthrie***
