A flood of opportunities

Water and agriculture have traditionally been relatively conservative markets and slow digital technology adopters. Today, the rapidly decreasing cost of digital hardware and computing is making them affordable for applications in the space, rapidly transforming it in the process.

Historically these industries have been managed in a relatively analogue, siloed fashion, the efficiency gains achieved through digitalisation are immense. We believe cutting-edge technologies such as AI, satellite technologies, digital twins, smart sensors, crop health detection and insurance tech looking to optimise our food and water systems will be highly attractive places to invest

Industry is one of the largest users and polluters of water. While economic interests have sometimes trumped ecological ones, this has been rapidly changing.

Regulations around wastewater discharge and waste disposal are becoming ever more stringent. At the same time, we are learning about emerging contaminants such as PFAs, pesticides, hormones and pharmaceuticals which accumulate in our water supply and pose a grave risk to human health.

Water stewardship for corporations is increasingly not just about corporate social responsibility, but also about managing reputation risk.

At the same time, the manufacture of products such as pharmaceuticals and semiconductors places high demands on the quality of process water. We believe solutions which cost-effectively and efficiently solve these issues will have significant and rapid uptake.

The clean energy transition is driving up demand for critical minerals such as lithium, copper, cobalt, manganese and nickel. Mining refinement often relies on water to separate minerals from ore, and for many minerals direct extraction from brines, tailings or seawater are becoming competitive with technological advancements. This has the added benefit of being much more environmentally friendly than excavation-based methods.

Mining companies discharge tens of billions of dollars of valuable minerals in wastewater, as they cannot be economically recovered with incumbent technologies. New innovations are changing this paradigm, opening up new mineral sources and contributing to a cleaner, more sustainable planet in the process.

An often-heard statistic is that 70% of the earth is covered in water, but only 0.4% of that is accessible for human use. The rest is locked away in glaciers, permanent snow, deep ground water and salty oceans. Population growth and economic development are inevitably driving up demand for this limited supply, while climate change and overexploitation of aquafers are putting supply under pressure.

This is pushing us to look at alternative, more expensive water sources like desalination, while also considering technologies to help us optimise usage and recycling of the water we have. Desalination, however, is incredibly expensive, energy-intensive, and has the added problem that the salty brine it produces ends up destroying marine life when it’s released back in the ocean. We focus on innovations making this process more affordable and sustainable.

At the same time, water quality is under pressure due to contaminants like PFAs, lead and pharmaceuticals, which are present in drinking water in many parts of the world. We expect solutions providing treatment for a wide range of pollutants at the point of use to show strong growth over the coming decades.

Agriculture uses approximately 70% of water globally. As water supplies around the world are increasingly under pressure, farmers are feeling the pinch.

Litre for litre, agricultural activities usually offer the lowest value-add compared to residential and industrial use, with resulting pressure on margins and need for innovation. Solutions which more effectively manage irrigation, fertilisation and crop health are therefore rapidly transforming the agricultural industry.

At the same time, agricultural runoff is a major issue affecting water bodies globally, leading to issues with drinking water, pesticide pollution and algae blooms. We expect to see significant uptake of solutions addressing these challenges.

Nature can be unforgiving. Soil degrades, weather patterns shift, and pests threaten crops. In the challenge of feeding a growing population, these natural hurdles are constant. Yet, in the realm of Soil & Crop Science, we find not just solutions but also opportunities to surpass nature’s limitations and sustainably nourish the world.

With the cost of genome sequencing declining, a new era in crop development is emerging. It enables us to create crop varieties that are more resilient to environmental challenges and require fewer chemical inputs, offering a sustainable path forward in agriculture.

The health of soil is equally critical. Healthy soil is the foundation of productive agriculture, but traditional agriculture has proven to be disastrous for the microbiome making up our soils. Our focus here is on technologies that rejuvenate and protect this vital resource. By understanding and enhancing soil health, we ensure that crops have the best possible conditions to thrive.

Nature is brutal. There can be too much sun, or rain. Or not enough. Pests ruin your harvest. Seeds wash away with flood rains. Fishing catch may disappoint.

We believe we can do better than nature. And we will have to, if we are to feed 10 billion people without putting further pressure on natural resources and biodiversity. The world’s land and water resources are being exploited at unprecedented rates, which combined with climate change is putting dire pressure on the ability of humanity to feed itself.

Controlled environment farming, both in the form of aquaculture and greenhouse farming, can be a fantastic way to efficiently and sustainably provide populations with food without depleting wild fish stocks. We believe the importance of these techniques will inevitably grow over times, and technologies allowing farmers to grow more efficiently will stand to benefit.