Farmers Business Network raised $110 million led by T. Rowe Price and Temasek

Farmers Business Network raised $110 million led by T. Rowe Price and Temasek to empower independent farmers who have been squeezed by Big Ag and low commodity prices. FBN uses data analytics to help farmers cut costs, increase profitability and gain distribution for their crops. The fundraising round represents one of the largest ag-tech investments to date.

Courtesy of Farmers Business Network

Farmers Business Network’s Charles Baron at its Farmer2Farmer conference

The Series D round brings the total amount of funding that FBN has received to nearly $200 million, and also moves FBN – which Forbes named to its list of Next Billion-Dollar Startups earlier this year and which had a valuation around $400 million before the latest influx of funds – closer to unicorn status. The company expects revenue of more than $60 million this year. FBN will use the funds to continue its rapid expansion in the United States, as well as its move into Canada.

While there has been a flood of money into ag-tech, $100 million deals in the space remain extremely rare, especially compared with traditional tech. And using data and analytics to make farming more profitable and sustainable – called “digital agriculture” – hasn’t previously been at the forefront of the funding. Indoor farming startup Plenty raised $200 million in a Series B round led by SoftBank over the summer, surpassing microbial seed company Indigo’s $100 million Series C round as the largest to date. “For us, and for the broader world of ag technology, this is a pretty big moment,” says FBN cofounder Charles Baron. “The long and short of it is, it’s the largest investment in digital agriculture ever.”