FINISTERE VENTURES 2020 AGRIFOOD TECH INVESTMENT REVIEW FINISTERE VENTURES 2020 AGRIFOOD TECH INVESTMENT REVIEW Taxonomy Pitchbook Methodology
2020 Agrifood Tech Investment Review Data provided by Introduction Clearly 2020 was an unprecedented year in the growth of venture investment in agrifood—as COVID-19 reshaped the world, the agrifood investment community reacted quickly to the extreme uncertainty. We saw a sharp spike in Q2 capital deployment, as investors raced to support their portfolios across the “COVID Gap” and in many cases, pulled forward their plans for fundraising given the inherent question about when markets would reopen. In Q2 of 2020, $5.9 billion was invested into agrifood startups, more than double the historical average investment of $2.7 billion for Q2 in 2018–2019, as syndicates stepped up to fund existing deals and companies raising funding pushed to close rounds. Concern regarding impacts on valuations were high during this period, but as the full year data shows, investor sentiment remained strong, valuations stabilized through Q3–Q4, and investments accelerated to produce the largest year on record in aggregate at $22.3 billion. The resilience of investment syndicates was a key factor in this outcome. The network effect of syndicates continuing to share deal flow and engaging in new deals where trusted relationships existed, enabled strong and sustained deployment of capital despite COVID-19 constraints. The COVID challenge, while having massive societal impact, did not ultimately override the positive trajectory of agrifood tech investment, which continued to grow at a 50% CAGR (2010–2020). In our view, the massive total addressable market (TAM) represented by the agrifood horizontal and high growth opportunities (in food in particular), as well as the groundswell of interest in the impact of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG), all fueled a rising tide that shows no sign of slowing in 2021.
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