Food, Farm, Future

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 15, the final episode in this series, Rob and Cal have a chat in the Beanpod with Ann-Marie Wun, Investment Manager from the Treis Group and Gerard Chia from VisVires New Protein Ventures.Ann and Gerard are both Singapore-based investors with a particular investment focus in sustainable food production solutions. They have a slow food investment thesis that sees opportunities for Australian Startups in Asia.And their advice for Startups?Be patient, Be Persistent, Ask the right questions and Focus on execution. Oh and make sure you have a solid business case – it’s hard to be green when you’re in the red!!All great advice! Enjoy!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 14, Rob and Amelia Fyfield catch up with Helen Brown, Founder and Managing Director of Bisnis Asia, and Alex from Salim Agrochemicals. Bisnis Asia is building linkages between Australia and Asia, helping business collaborate, access markets and scale. Great insights from Alex around the common challenges that farmers face between Indonesia and Australia, and the importance of education and extension to improve productivity.Alex comments that culture is so important in accessing Asian markets - building trust is key to strong relationships. He also schools us on the “3 Yeses” in Indonesia - “Yes I hear you”, “Yes I understand what you mean” and “Yes I agree with you”.And finally a classic quote that defines the importance of building relationships – “If you don’t know someone, you don’t love someone”. Enjoy!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 13 Will and Rob catch up with Guy Hudson, Executive Director of Sparklabs Cultiv8, and Isabelle Decitre, Founder and CEO of ID Capital. Guy and Isabelle reflect on the importance of educated and patient capital in driving sustainable food production globally, and how venture based models may not be the right fit in agriculture.Lots on insights in accessing capital for introverts! Enjoy

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 12 Rob and Will have a chat about Smart Farming with Lou Conway, Director of the University of New England SMART Region Incubator, and John Evans, Head of the Thomas Elder Institute. Both Lou and John agree that time is the biggest limitation for farmers, and the importance of challenge-led innovation in delivering viable business models for new technology.Plenty of food for thought in this episode. Enjoy!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 11 Cal and Will have a chat about Farming more with Less with Rob Trenchard, Director of Hydox technologies and Patrick Duffy, CEO of e-Agri.Hydrox is addressing the massive issue of plastic mulch film waste – a $5bn market that generates thousands of tonnes of plastic waste that is either burnt, buried or ends up in the soil. And e-Agri is delivering fully automated vertical farming solutions for urban farming developments which are moving fast in Asia.Both companies are committed to sustainable farming and delivering safe, clean and nutritious food to your plate.Enjoy the chat!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 10, Will and Rob talk with Brian Ruddle, Managing Director of the Impact Innovation Group, and Duncan Farquar, Manager of Emerging Industries at AgriFutures Australia.Brian and Duncan are both passionate about growing young people in Australian Ag, using challenge led innovation to drive adoption of new technology that makes business sense. And we get some crusty insights into harnessing biodiversity to bring natural design thinking to life!Enjoy the chat!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 9 Cal and Will have a curious chat with Chris McLoghlin and Daryl Lyons, cofounders of Escavox, a young Australian startup using sensors and blockchain to bring transparency to the supply chain to tell a story about waste and inefficiency.Escavox are currently tracking 250,000 pallets with Woolworths, Australia’s largest supermarket chain. They are also collaborating with the Costa Group, Australia’s largest grower, packer and marketer of fresh fruit and vegetables.Escavox recently closed a successful Series A funding round and announced that John Dahlsen, former chairman of Woolworths, is joining the team.An inspiring story of a Startup perving on the supply chain and giving food a voice. Enjoy!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 8, Cal chats with two young entrepreneurs who are changing the world of packaging and fund raising.Kimberly Bolton, CEO of Carapac, leads a young company using crustacean shells to replace single use plastics. And Matt Hinds is Managing Director of AgCrowd, a young crowd funding platform making waves in agriculture and energy.Both are passionate about shaping the world’s sustainable future.Amazing young talent who are making a difference - enjoy the chat!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 6 Cal and Rob talk Agtech Hardware with a Scott and a Canuck, two engineers who are passionate about making life easier for Australian farmers.Scott Glover is the CTO for AgriAce and Darren Wolchyn is the Cofounder and CEO of Smart Paddock. From remote electric fence monitoring to remote animal tracking, Scott and Darren are bridging software and hardware to find solutions to some big problems.This episodes’ crusty quote comes from Scott;“Hardware is hard! Find a way to fail fast!”Enjoy failing fast!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.Have you heard of the Varoa Destructor! Sounds like something from Game of Thrones!! In episode 7 Rob and Will talk Beetech with Danny Le Feurve from Australia Bee Services and Bryan Hoyt from Hivemind in New Zealand. Both Danny and Bryan have a passion for improving bee productivity, hive health and security. And Danny shares a few thoughts on the recent news around fake honey and fake news.Enjoy!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.What do wallabies, forklifts and green bananas have in common?In episode 5 Rob and Will talk innovation in crop waste with Krista Watkins, Cofounder of Natural Evolutions, and Angeline Ancharia from the Monash Food Innovation Centre.It’s amazing to hear how an aha! moment can transform into a new business opportunity that is addressing the problem of crop waste and feeding 10billion people on this planet in the next 30 years. Crop Waste is increasingly viewed as a resource to generate new income for farmers. As Angeline points out, Ag and Food are joined at the hip – people need to eat!This episodes crusty quote comes from Krista;“Walk the path of the fearless warrior for greatness!Enjoy being fearless!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 4 Will and Cal have a curious chat with one of the first female tractor drivers in Israel and an ex Lawyer turned Agtech Investor!Nitza Kardish, CEO of Trendlines, and Craig Shapiro, CEO and Cofounder of the Blue River Group, talk about the strong Agtech connection between Israel and Australia, and what learnings there are for incubating agtech ideas with impact.This episodes’ Crusty Quote comes from Craig;“If you are investing in Agtech you are already an impact investor!”Enjoy making an impact!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 3 Rob and Will cover agtech investment in Asia with Michael Dean, Cofounder of AgFunder, and Eugene Wong, Founder and Managing Director of the Sirius Group. Michael and Eugene are both experienced investors, and they share amazing some nuggets of information for startups looking to explore opportunities in Asia.Singapore is fast emerging as a key agrifood tech hub in Asia, and the Government are making big efforts to attract investment in vertical farming, aquaculture and new protein. They discuss the need for patient capital in Agtech and the importance of collaboration.And this episodes’ Crusty Quote comes from Michael;“Startup life is hard work, and you need a personality type that can walk through walls”.Enjoy the journey!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In episode 2 Cal and Rob tackle recycling and waste innovation with Richard Macchiesi, General Manager (Insights and Innovation) with VISY, and Olympia Yarger, Founder and CEO of GoTerra.We hear about the strong entrepreneurial spirit in VISY, a large family-owned company focused on packaging innovation for a better world. And Olympia is blazing the trail with her maggots robots, responding to the massive issue of crop and food waste. Both companies are making a big impact in the world of waste.This episodes’ Crusty Quote comes from Olympia about raising capital: “The no was because your narrative didn’t fit – it’s how you tell the story”. Enjoy telling your story!

Hi, this is Graham Brown from Asia Tech Podcast. Welcome to the EvokeAg Podcast series, brought to you by the team at Beanstalk.In this first episode in this series, Rob, Will and Cal speak have Tony Hunter in the Beanpod, tackling the meaty topic of innovation and the potential to reinvent our food system.Tony is a food futurist and founder of Future Cubed, helping companies predict the impact of technologies on their business. He’s a firm believer that innovation is at the heart of any business’ long term success.If you are someone who eats there are plenty of bites here for you! Enjoy!