The Future Of Food
What do we have to look forward to in terms of food and agtech?
The food and agriculture industry has been one of the slowest sectors in adopting technological innovation. Between 2010 and 2017, food-system-focused start-ups attracted only a tenth of investments of those in the health sector globally. Nonetheless, food carries a disproportionate amount of weight and attention due to its intrinsic value to our sustenance and well-being.
Now, advancements in The Fourth Industrial Revolution bring about a major opportunity to accelerate the transformation of how we produce, deliver, and consume food. Whether it’s AI-powered robots that have the intelligence and the dexterity to detect and pick ripe strawberries, a new supply chain and distribution system that allows farms to be operated locally in New York City, or food that is tailored to your genome, emerging enterprises have the potential to drive rapid progress in the efficiency, sustainability, and health impacts of food systems.
While many positive changes are still in the early stages of development, a report by the World Economic Forum and McKinsey & Company anticipates that if scaled properly, these efforts to transform food systems could deliver significant positive impacts by 2030. To help speed up this progress, WeWork, now part of The We Company, is investing in food and ag tech startups through an initiative called Food Labs Accelerator.