$3 million in prizes awarded to seven winning companies to conclude the two-day Grow-NY Food and Ag Summit

Grow-NY, Media Release, 17 November 2022, Ithaca, N.Y.

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that ProAgni has been named the $1 million grand prize winner of the Grow-NY business competition, a food and agriculture startup challenge focused on enhancing the emerging food, beverage, and agriculture innovation cluster in Central New York, the Finger Lakes, and the Southern Tier. The Grow-NY competition is funded by Empire State Development and administered by Cornell University.

In its fourth year, the unprecedented program once again attracted exceptional startups and entrepreneurial talent from around the globe to compete in its business development accelerator and two-day pitch competition at the Grow-NY Summit. ProAgni  — a company that created a revolutionary range of supplements and feeds for livestock that lowers methane emissions from sheep and cattle without the use of antibiotics, decreasing a producer’s environmental footprint without increasing costs — was one of eight finalists to take home prize money. The award ceremony was held virtually on the morning of Nov. 17.

“We are honored to join the incredible roster of Grow-NY winners, and grateful to New York state, Grow-NY, and the Center of Excellence for Food and Agriculture for their support. We’re excited to expand our mission to revolutionize supplements and feeds for livestock that lower methane emissions into Upstate New York and the prize money will allow us to make an even greater impact,” said Lachlan Campbell, CEO and Co-Founder of ProAgni. “We’ve had an amazing experience throughout the program, from the guidance and connections our mentor Brad Goulthrope provided to the regional partners we were able to meet, to our competitors whose cutting-edge work and pitches were truly inspiring.”

In all, 390 startups applied from 52 countries, including Singapore, Australia, and Sri Lanka. In the U.S., 25 states were represented, including 92 entries from New York. 38% of applicants included a female founder and a record 75% included a founder from an underrepresented minority group. The 20 finalists received dedicated mentorship from hand-selected regional business advisors leading up to the competition. Those selected as winners will now immediately get to work executing their business plans in New York state, leveraging the connections made and regional knowledge gained from the competition.

More than 1,200 people registered for the fourth annual Grow-NY Summit. The 20 finalists gave highly anticipated business pitches to a panel of six judges reflecting a depth and breadth of agriculture, food production, and venture development expertise, who listened to each pitch and asked probing questions, before deliberating to determine the top winners. 

Another highlight of the event was the Symposium, featuring panel discussions addressing the intersection of food and farming, venture development, and sustainability, all in an effort to help tackle the biggest challenges facing the food and agriculture industry. Attendees had the chance to continue the conversation during networking breaks and at the Ecosystem Expo, an opportunity to connect with resource providers and organizations supporting startups working in the agrifood system. 

The Summit culminated with the presentation of awards, where Trish Thomas, CEO and co-founder of 2021 Grow-NY $1 million grand prize winner Every Body Eat, announced the four $250,000 winners and Commissioner Richard Ball revealed the two $500,000 recipients, as well as the $1 million award winner. Upon accepting the awards, the winners commit to making a quantifiable, enduring regional impact in Central New York, the Finger Lakes, and the Southern Tier during a 12-month period of agreement, creating a lasting economic opportunity in the region.

The winners included:

Grand prize $1,000,000 Winner: ProAgni– Lavington, Australia

ProAgni ProTect is a revolutionary range of supplements and feeds for livestock that lowers methane emissions from sheep and cattle without the use of antibiotics, decreasing a producer’s environmental footprint without increasing costs.

$500,000 Winner: Craft Cannery – Bergen, NY

Craft Cannery takes cherished recipes from your kitchen to the shelves of grocery stores, restaurants, farmers markets and beyond, specializing in the contract manufacturing of sauces, dressings, marinades, and more.

$500,000 Winner: Hempitecture– Ketchum, ID

Hempitecture is on a mission to create healthy, energy-efficient building materials that positively impact people and the planet by capturing carbon dioxide and replenishing farmland. Its biobased insulation makes construction projects more sustainable, healthier, and higher-performing. 

$250,000 Winner: Labby –Cambridge, MA

Labby’s technology provides rapid, accurate, and affordable solutions for dairy farms, leveraging AI-enabled optical sensing for raw milk testing that delivers instant insights to your fingertips. 

$250,000 Winner: Sweet Pea Plant Based Kitchen – Rochester, NY

Sweet Pea is a plant-powered kitchen creating transformative paths to wellness, combining the benefits of its plant-centric food meal service and nutrition coaching to help people to sustain a healthy life.

$250,000 Winner: Vivid Machines – Toronto, Canada

Vivid X-Vision system captures the visible and chemical details of every plant across an entire crop from bud to harvest to manage growth and predict yield, and provide means for early diagnosis of pests, diseases, and nutrient deficiencies.

$250,000 Winner: Zalliant – Amsterdam, NY

Zalliant’s IoT and artificial intelligence technologies provide value and efficiency to farmers through improved decision making and management. 

Grow-NY judges based award decisions on the following criteria:

• The viability of the startup’s business model
• The diversity, quality, readiness, and completeness of the startup team
• The value that the startup offers customers
• The agrifood innovation that the startup has invented
• The job growth and opportunity potential that the startup can bring to the region

The competition also featured an “Audience Choice” award for the startup voted by the public to have the most standout and promising pitch. Seneca Farms Biochar received $10,000 in prize money sponsored by Wegmans.

Grow-NY winners have continued to raise money, expand, and thrive. RealEats, year one’s top prize winner, has raised over $20 million in additional funding and entered a partnership with GNC. They recently opened an 80,000 square-foot production facility in Geneva, N.Y. SoFresh, another year-one winner, has generated $3.3 million to expand into new food markets. Year-three grand prize winner Every Body Eat has made its way into Whole Foods Market stores nationwide. Other winners have expanded their customer bases, developed strategic partnerships, and continued to secure funding.

“Grow-NY finalists and winners continue to surpass our expectations on all fronts, successfully leveraging the strengths of the region to scale their ventures, adding jobs, attracting investment, and reinforcing New York’s role as a global agrifood leader,” said Jenn Smith, Program Director, Grow-NY. “I offer my most enthusiastic congratulations to this year’s cohort.”

“We are honored to join the incredible roster of Grow-NY winners, and grateful to New York state, Grow-NY, and the Center of Excellence for Food and Agriculture for their support. We’re excited to expand our mission to revolutionize supplements and feeds for livestock that lower methane emissions into Upstate New York and the prize money will allow us to make an even greater impact,” said Lachlan Campbell, CEO and Co-Founder of ProAgni. “We’ve had an amazing experience throughout the program, from the guidance and connections our mentor Brad Goulthrope provided to the regional partners we were able to meet, to our competitors whose cutting-edge work and pitches were truly inspiring.”

Empire State Development funds the Grow-NY competition through its Upstate Revitalization Initiative (URI) — CNY Rising, Finger Lakes Forward, and Southern Tier Soaring. Cornell University’s Center for Regional Economic Advancement administers the competition. All winners will work to make a positive economic impact in the Grow-NY region, which consists of 22 counties that serve as home to vibrant farmlands, abundant freshwater, and several rising cities, including Rochester, Syracuse, Ithaca, Geneva, and Binghamton. The winning businesses will foster job growth, connect with local industry partners, and contribute to a thriving economy. 

To learn more about the winners, mentors and judges, visit http://grow-ny.com/.