Almendra: Novel crop yield improvement technology – trial and licensing opportunity

Opportunity for

• Corporates, businesses, or startups interested in exclusive licensing of a novel open field growth light technology for crops in Australia and the US.
• Industry partners, in outdoor cropping, interested in trialling and implementing a novel growth light technology.

Opportunity description

Industry challenge

Traditionally, artificial lighting for optimising plant growth has been limited to high-value crops in greenhouses. Open field application was impractical and costly. LED & solar lighting costs have dropped significantly in recent years changing the business model for augmented crop lighting.

Almendra have developed a patented technology integrates LED lighting solution designed to work with irrigation rigs for open field farming, with promising results around enhanced crop yields and profitability. Their natural and sustainable solution also reduces pesticide use, supports cultivation on drier land, and is applicable to many commodity and speciality crops.

Large Field trials in Brazil have demonstrated over 50% yield improvements in soybeans, and even greater yields in Thailand with stevia.

Current opportunity

Almendra are seeking partners to license the patents to roll out commercially in Australia and the US. They invite expressions of interest from corporates, businesses or startups who would like to explore bringing this technology to market or to run trials across different cropping systems.

They are also interested in connecting with relevant industry partners for both commodity crops (e.g., rice, sugarcane, corn) and specialty crops (e.g., hops, ginger, turmeric, herbs, short-day and long-day horticultural crops).

Almendra is financially independent.

• To find out more about this opportunity or to connect with the team go to "Enquire now"*

Opportunity background

Almendra is a profitable, fast-growing manufacturer of stevia-based natural sweeteners which we sell B2B to the food and beverage industry. Their expertise extends beyond sweeteners to innovative agricultural technologies.

Almendra hold US, AU & global patents (US 10849280B2;AU 2014313857) for “rigs for illuminating fields and methods of illuminating plants,” which significantly improve crop yields by utilising photoperiodic responses.

In the case of “short-day” plants by arresting, promoting or delaying flowering and increasing leaf biomass, which we use in stevia cultivation.

Irrigation rigs can be retrofitted to include LED arrays for night lighting.

Potential other applications

Pharmaceutical and functional flowering crops including herbs and spices which can be grown across Australia from the tropical regions to drier climates where pivot rigs would access irrigation. Grid or Solar power sources.