
Connecting Innovators, Investors, Industry Professionals and Early Adopter Customers
From improvements in nutritional value, to better resource efficiency, to improved yield, to better cost controls, the agriculture industry is ripe for disruption. It’s happening already, with harvesting automation systems, sensor-based farm management tools and other advanced technologies already appearing on the modern farm. iSelect is investing in the entrepreneurs who are focused on making these innovations happen.
“Given the overall AgTech entrepreneurial activity in the region, and the large number of multinational players, the American Heartland can be a powerful influence in driving the objectives of the AgTech revolution. Taken together, these resources indicate a regional competitive advantage in AgTech, similar to what the Silicon Valley cluster has provided for the IT industry.”
“AgTech: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Growth”, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, April 2014
iSelect Portfolio Companies
iSelect focuses on early-stage food and agriculture companies that are poised to help push the next agricultural revolution forward. We deliberately invest in companies that can make a positive impact on our society, as well as on the bottom line.
Meet Our Selection Committee
Our Food and Agriculture Selection Committee consists of industry and subject matter experts who help guide iSelect’s investment decisions. With firsthand experience and a true pulse on the industry, we consider these individuals key to our success in finding and investing in food and ag innovation.

As deputy director of The Nature Conservancy’s Regenerative Grazing Lands strategy in North America, William leads on-the-ground testing and research of improved ranch management frameworks and tools, and he regularly communicates results with ranchers, land…

As the director of innovation at Beck’s Hybrids, Brad Fruth works to deliver value to the American farmer. For more than 18 years, he has dedicated his days (and nights) to delivering the successful convergence…

Cheryl Van Dyne is an experienced regulatory affairs professional with specializations in the biotech food, feed, excipient, cosmetic, chemical, and oilfield industries. After 22 years at CP Kelco as Director of Global Regulatory Affairs, Cheryl…

Renée Vassilos is The Nature Conservancy’s Director of Agriculture Innovation. She manages TNC’s investments in innovative companies that will help scale regenerative agriculture production practices. Prior to joining The Nature Conservancy, Renée spent nearly a…
Join Our Food & Agriculture Innovation Network.
Join the over 9,000 entrepreneurs, investors, and industry professionals driving the future of food and agriculture.
Resources and News

The World is Facing a New Food Crisis. Innovators Can Help
Today the world is facing the prospect of widespread food insecurity and starvation unlike any food crisis we have experienced in our lifetimes. According to the United Nations World Food program (WFP), “[m]illions of people across the world are at risk of being...

It’s a New Day in Healthy, Affordable & Sustainable Ingredients
Food producers are increasingly trying to make their ingredients more sustainable, healthy, and affordable. There are many ingredients today in all sorts of food products that achieve the exact opposite aim: they entail negative environmental effects, they can be...

How Aquaculture Factors into the Future of Food
The world’s population is growing rapidly. There are currently over 7.9 billion people on the planet, with this figure set to rise to around 8.5 billion by 2030 and 9.8 billion in 2050. At the same time, world hunger remains a major problem; while steadily declining...

Decarbonization in Agriculture: Paving the Way for Net-Zero Emissions by 2050
The signatories of the Paris Climate Accord hope to limit average global temperature increases to between 1.5 to 2.0 C. degrees by 2050 in the decarbonization race to achieve net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. But if recent temperatures are any indication, we’re not...

As Food Cost Rise, the Need for Innovation is Acute
Inflation is everywhere, and the increase in food prices is apparent “across the board,” as Miguel Patricio, chief executive of Kraft Heinz, told the BBC in the fall, adding that the rising cost of basic ingredients such as cereals and oils has led the company to up...

The Future of Sustainable Crop Protection: the Companies That Will Get Us There
Is there a better investment opportunity in sustainable crop protection? Chemical fertilizers and insecticides have helped farms meet the growing demand for food worldwide, but not without negative consequences. Some insecticides escape into the air and cause illness....

Crusonia Forum Brings Together the Changemakers Driving the Future of Food
“We are here to showcase a new wave of companies that are effectively applying technology to improve, disrupt, and transform agriculture, food and health for the better. We have no idea if a future Amazon is in our midst today, but looking back on it we really had no...

Specialty Crops: A Look at the Technology Innovators Moving the Industry Forward
From fruits and vegetables, to tree nuts and flowers, specialty crops represent a unique class of crops that require extra care, investment and attention to be profitable and sustainable. That’s in part because the products produced by this segment of the agriculture...

What’s Next for Plant-Based Protein? You’ll Be Surprised
Seemingly overnight, plant-based protein in everywhere. Impossible burgers are on the menu at restaurants across the country, Taco Bell is testing a taco made with synthetic chicken and plant-based milk producer Oatly just completed an IPO that valued the company at...

Specialty Crops: Industry Dynamics, Challenges and Opportunities
The specialty crops industry makes up a significant proportion of U.S.’s total agricultural output by value. However, producing specialty crops has its own set of unique challenges that call for similarly unique solutions. This panel focused on the specialty crop...

Uncovering Hidden Gems: Flyover States Shape the Future of Venture
It's no secret that innovation drives down costs, making cutting-edge technology more accessible over time. For instance, a terabyte of digital storage now costs a mere $100, while not too long ago, businesses would spend millions to achieve the same capacity....

Food is Health: Access Uncorrelated Growth
“Food is Health” has driven the iSelect investment process since our start in 2014. Americans spend more than $1.7T yearly on food and almost $1.9T on diet-related illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, obesity and type 2 diabetes.1 We’re Focused on Companies...