Farm-style Shark Tank Pitches Five Agriculture Technologies
Top Producer 2022-Ag Launch
In hot-box style, five diverse farm technologies associated with AgLaunch—Salin 247, Susterre, Phinite, BovIQ, and Holganix—took center stage at Top Producer Summit in Nashville, Tenn., on Feb. 15.
Salin 247
Specializing in electric, lightweight farm machinery, Salin 247, introduced a 4-row (30”) autonomous planter prototype. Dave Krog, CEO of Salin 247, says the company is building a comprehensive platform of crop production machines, and will expand to 6- and 8-row versions, capable of accommodating a boom or tank.
“These machines are small and cause no soil compaction at a weight of 1,400 lb.,” Krog describes. He says the electric machinery is capable of 24-7 field activity and offers a massive reduction in overall costs when multiple units feature on the same operation.
Susterre
In 2021, Susterre released an upgrade kit that adds ultra-high pressure water jet tech to no-till and traditional planters to cut through crop residue.
“It only uses about 10 gallons of water per acre and reduces planting costs by 10%...resulting in payback in two planting seasons,” says Michael Cully, CEO and cofounder of Susterre.
Overall, according to Cully, the ultra-high pressure water system offers a reduction in farming costs, expanded planting window, earlier germination, lower cost transition to no-till, and a solution for hairpinning.
Phinite
Regenerative fertilizer from animal waste is the domain of Phinite. Animal farms have nutrients and crops farms need nutrients: “Fertilizer is a $20 billion market in the U.S., and animal farms are capable of producing $5 billion worth of fertilizer per year,” says Phinite founder and CEO Jordan Phasey.
Phinite takes animal waste from lagoons puts the material into its heavily automated drying facilities, which transform the waste into a phosphorus-based, no-odor fertilizer that can be used by farmers.
“One application equals five years of regenerative practices,” Phasey contends.
BovIQ
Sixth-generation producer Christian Nielson introduced BovIQ, an app that keeps track of individual calf records and tells a precise story of how a calf was raised. Essentially, BovIQ provides direct evidence of the essential points of a calf’s history.
The app can provide $300 per cow-calf pair, Nielson says. “It tells a production story and makes your cattle and your land more valuable, through a grazing plan that matches supply and demand. The key benefits are healthier calves, higher prices, reduced risk of loss, and lower cost of hay.”
Holganix
Holganix manufactures and distributes microbial products intended to drive soil health, nutrient efficiency, and yield. “In 2020, we spent 18.6 billion on fertilizer—60% of that expenditure went to corn, soy, and wheat…50% of every dollar spent on fertilizer is not going to the plant,” says Barrett Ersek, CEO of Holganix.
The solution is Holganix, according to Ersek: “We have 800 species of soil microbes all working together in a systems approach. The result for a farmer is typically a 2x to 10x investment in the first year they use our product with a single application close to planting.”
Shelf stable for four weeks outside of refrigeration, Ersek says current Holganix use in corn and soybeans is expanding to cotton and rice. “The microbial technology hitting the market today, and the innovations around it are like the internet in 1999. There are really big things getting ready to happen.”
Read more coverage of the Top Producer Summit.
