Homegrown agritech ramps up

The past two weeks have delivered good news to BC agritech startups.

The biggest news was the acquisition by Vancouver-based crop data and pest control company SemiosBio Technologies Inc. of AgWorld, an information management firm based in Australia on August 24.

“Together, Semios and Agworld will form one of the largest independent ag-tech solutions providers in the world, servicing growers, agronomists and ag retailers in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Europe and South Africa,” a company press release said.

The deal is the third this year for Semios, which earlier this year acquired Altrac, a cellular controls developer based in California, and Centricity, a Washington State developer of a suite of field data collection applications.

Terms of the transactions were not disclosed, but Semios last year raised US$75 million in private equity through a funding round led by Morningside Group of Boston, a private equity and venture capital firm.

A series of significant investments is also helping propel development at North Vancouver-based Ecoation Innovative Solutions Inc.

Biobest Group NV of Belgium took a $10 million equity stake in Ecoation on September 3, with Biobest CEO Jean-Marc Vandoorne joining Ecoation’s board of directors. The investment will support the global commercial roll-out of Ecoation’s crop monitoring platform.

Biobest’s commitment follows a total of $10 million in federal funding from a variety of programs, most recently $3.9 million in AgriInnovate cash in support of cleantech development, as well as $2.5 million raised from investors.

The good news comes in advance of the RegenBC conference in support of the province’s regenerative agriculture and Agritech network. Scheduled for September 28-30, the online conference aims to encourage farmers to harness “the latest and best in agri-technology” in support of regenerative farming practices.

The province defines regenerative practices as those which “aim to restore soils, water and biodiversity health to improve overall ecosystem services and make farmland more resilient to climate change.”

All content on this website is copyrighted, and cannot be republished or reproduced without permission.

6 hours ago

... See MoreSee Less

View Comments

Likes: 1
Shares: 0
Comments: 0

Comment on Facebook

11 hours ago

Forty-six regions in BC are eligible to participate in the federal livestock tax deferral program, announced yesterday, more than anywhere else in the country. The program allows producers who downsize their breeding herds by 15% to defer reporting the proceeds until the following year, when they buy replacement stock. But after multiple years of drought, the BC beef herd is cruising 25-year lows and some producers are calling for more support to maintain and rebuild their herds. For more, see: [www.countrylifeinbc.com/bc-leads-livestock-tax-deferrals/]

#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 19
Shares: 7
Comments: 0

4 days ago

After weeks and weeks of no moisture, there's rain in Kelowna today. While much more moisture is needed over the coming weeks and months to reduce drought conditions and the air smells of wet campfire, the slow, steady rain is very welcome for fruit grower#BCAg#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 7
Shares: 0
Comments: 0

5 days ago

The first Delta Farmland and Wildlife Trust Grassland Set-aside Variety Trial Field Day was held at Delta's family-owned Tecarte Farms, August 27. Co-owner Bill Bates and DFWT executive director Christine Schmalz welcomed more than 35 people to view seven acres planted to different grassland blends specifically chosen to rejuvenate the soil and support the farm's blueberries. For the Bates family, it was time to try something different following the decline of the field's blueberry bushes over the past several years. "We tried everything, and nothing worked," says Bates. The blueberries were removed in May and the grassland crops planted about a week later.

#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 17
Shares: 1
Comments: 0

Bessette Creek is the latest watershed hit with a temporary fish protection order this year as the province moves to protect returning Chinook salmon. A total of 131 surface and groundwater users must cease drawing water immediately, with forage producers, greenhouses and nurseries impacted. "Declining flows in Bessette Creek reached record lows in early July 2026 and have remained below the minimum level required to support fish population survival," says the province. Bessette producers have embraced voluntary cutbacks, scheduled irrigation and other measures to reduce water use, and are also waiting on funding to boost water storage infrastructure. They're the second group of producers hit with a provincial order this year. Salmon River irrigators were told to top watering earlier this month following a reprieve to address wildfire risk. Growers in both the Salmon River and Bessette watersheds are urging the province to support new water storage infrastructure in advance of next year.

#BCAg ... See MoreSee Less

Likes: 7
Shares: 1
Comments: 3

There is a problem... having lived in the salmon river ( silver creek ) area, I remember a fish biologist telling family members that salmon only "survive" in high iron content creeks, they do not "thrive".... salmon river ( silver creek ) is a very high iron content, would stain clothes brown when i would use bleach... So don't expect high salmon numbers off of that creek , even in ideal situations...

I just wish they would take an interest in CHASE CREEK....went bone dry...100% of trout abd other species died...smell was terrible from rotting fish. Understand this has happened many times in the past. Chase Irrigation District totally responsible for this disaster. Now fishermen are complaining about major drop in water levels at Pillar Lake.

They could not mismanage things worse than they have. It's impossible for them to. The fact that farmers that we need for our animals are now suffering the consequences our governments have not protected us from, is absolutely fucking wild.