Startup Stash - City Farms, Ends, Trends & Xmas 🌲

Three of the biggest agritech startups with a butt load of investments are: 

Bowery: 

The company builds smart indoor farms near cities. It grows fresh, organic, pesticide-free produce that can be delivered within the cities, lowering transportation costs during a time of supply chain crisis.

• Latest deal: $320.73M, later-stage VC, Series C (August 2021)
• Total raised to date: $531.23M

AeroFarms: 

Founded in 2004, the Certified B Corporation grows produce indoors year-round while using 95% less water, 99% less land and zero pesticides. 

• Latest deal: $317M, PIPE (March 2021)
• Total raised to date: $531.48M

80 Acres Farms: 

The startup delivers quick and low-cost products by locating its indoor farms close to its customers— while eliminating the environmental impact of cross-country transportation.

• Latest deal: $160M, PE growth/expansion (August 2021)
• Total raised to date: $250M

Global VC funding is off the walls this year. The total amount invested in 2021 is nearing $600 billion, as per Crunchbase, almost double the number last year. 

But these awesome numbers aren’t just referring to investments in the U.S. or Asia. The European tech scene is also red-hot. It’s estimated that European tech companies will raise $122 billion this year. That’s nearly 3x higher than last year’s total of $41 billion.

• Most promising startup sector: Climate tech/clean tech companies— rank no.1 and are on track to receive 11% of all European funding this year.
• Foreign interest is on the rise: The share of European VC deals with at least one US or Asian investor has climbed steadily from 19% in 2017 to 33% in 2021.

European founders are feeling pretty good. Nearly seven in 10 (69%) of founders are “more optimistic” than they were 12 months ago. In the past three years, that number of positivity has never broken 40%.

PNC’s calculations of the price of the gifts from The Twelve Days of Christmas song for the past 38 years show a drastic rise in costs in recent times. Adding up “Four Calling Birds,” “Nine Ladies Dancing” and the rest currently generates a 2021 bill of $41,205.58.

That marks a 5.7% rise in the overall index since 2019. “Six Geese a Laying” saw the biggest gain, rising 57.1%.

Ideally in a tight labor market, such as the one in U.S. right now, thanks to the great resignation and inflation, unionized workers’ high demands should be met. Instead, it seems labor is starting to lose its upper hand.

After failing to reach a contract with its union last week, Kellogg’s decided to permanently replace some 1400 striking workers. The hourly rates for replacement workers - as posted on Kellogg’s job board - are $21.72 an hour for general labor and $34 for skilled labor. That’s comparable to the pay for the unionized employees, who make on average $35.26 an hour. 

But shouldn’t the rate for replacement labor be higher? 

The fact that wages of both side are more or less the same suggests the labor market may not be as tight as we think.

After the pandemic’s great resignation, we’re already starting to see a resurgence of labor. The unemployment rate is high and the pandemic has forced workers into more unsafe working conditions, such as hospitality or healthcare - or less favorable schedules due to WFH and hybrid structures. It’s possible people are starting to look for traditional, more stable work schedules again.