- Author: Anne Megaro
- Author: Sheron Violini
On May 8, the University of California hosted an emerging science and technology innovation day at the UC Center in Sacramento. The UC inventions showcased at the event were examples of how academic research translates into real-world applications that benefit Californians and the world.
Of the 25 innovations featured, UC ANR was represented by two inventions – Steam Weeder and CropManage. Innovations were displayed for legislators and staff for most of the day.
Vice President Glenda Humiston also participated in the Fireside Chat, where over lunch UC Board of Regents Chair Rich Leib and Regent Lark Park led a conversation on innovation, clean energy and biomedical discoveries.
Steam Weeder is a machine designed to inject steam into the soil, offering a safer alternative to chemical pesticides. By heating soil to a precise temperature, this device effectively eliminates pests by thermally rupturing their cell walls, protecting crops and reducing the need for hazardous chemicals. This innovative machine reduces weeds by 85% and decreases the incidence of soil-borne diseases. Steam Weeder is ideal for farmers managing row crops, vineyards and orchards, especially those facing increased costs and strict regulations for chemical fumigants. The Steam Weeder, developed by Steven Fennimore, UC Davis professor of Cooperative Extension and extension specialist for vegetable weed management, offers an effective, safe and economical solution for large-scale weed management.
CropManage is a web-based tool developed by UCCE Monterey County farm advisor Michael Cahn to help farmers manage and make informed decisions for efficient crop production. Using years of research and field studies, CropManage software integrates data from satellite imagery, water stations, soil maps and field sensors to tailor specific recommendations for irrigation and fertilization of crops. CropManage provides water and fertilizer management guidance while maximizing production efficiency.
UCCE Santa Clara County small farms advisor Aparna Gazula and grower Mark Mason participated in the event to explain to legislators and staff how CropManage helps growers save water and fertilizer.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Apply to the 3rd Annual UC Entrepreneur Pitch Competition and win a chance to pitch in front of more than 700 venture capitalists at the Global Corporate Venturing and Innovation Summit and $15,000 in prize money.
The event is a systemwide effort to connect veteran and new UC entrepreneurs with coaching, resources and exposure to a network of investors to advance and scale their startups.
The university's Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship is inviting startups with at least one UC student, staff, academic or alumnus founder to pitch their projects to investors and strategic partners by submitting a pitch video and an associated pitch deck to the competition website. Video submissions will be featured on the university's entrepreneur website, showcasing the impressive entrepreneurial activity and rich innovative spirit of the UC community.
There are two tracks in the competition: an early-stage track for startups in funding round pre-Series A, and a later-stage track for startups in Series A and beyond. A panel of distinguished corporate mentors will review and select a dozen finalists: six startups in the early-stage track and six startups in the later-stage track.
All finalists will receive individualized coaching from their mentors before their final presentations at the 4th Annual Global Corporate Venturing & Innovation Summit in Monterey on Jan. 30-31, 2019.
Finalists will then pitch their startups to more than 700 business leaders and venture capitalists. The winner in each of the two categories will take home a $15,000 prize for his or her company.
If you are interested in competing, submit your materials to the competition website by 11:59 p.m. PST, on Dec. 12, 2018. The 12 finalists will be announced in early January.
UC generates an average of five inventions per day and holds more patents than any other university in the country. In 2013, President Napolitano launched the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Initiative to leverage the scale and diversity of the UC system to build an even more vibrant entrepreneurial culture.
Learn more at https://entrepreneurs.universityofcalifornia.edu.
- Author: Tyler Ash
On Jan. 30, 2018, another seed was planted for the future of Northern California's agriculture industry. That seed was a commitment to innovation and new technologies in a region where the primary economic driver is agriculture.
Around 200 people, including farmers, ag innovators and venture capitalists, attended an event in Woodland titled “Creating Northern California's Ag Innovation Hub,” presented by UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, AgStart, The Food Front and the City of Woodland.
Glenda Humiston, UC vice president for agriculture and natural resources, gave the keynote speech and talked about the importance of synergy between agriculture, innovation and technology in California, while discussing 21st century challenges, such as rural broadband connectivity, going forward.
“Entrepreneurship in our rural areas is far greater than in our urban areas,” Humiston said on ag tech innovation.
She urged ag innovators to use UC institutions and programs, including the UC Integrated Pest Management Program, the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, the Agricultural Issues Center, UC Informatics and GIS, the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, California 4-H, California Naturalist, the UC Master Gardener Program, the UC Master Food Preserver Program, the California Institute for Water Resources, the UC Nutrition Policy Institute, the UC Cooperative Extension system, the UC Research Extension Center system, Apps for Ag, along with all of the UC campuses.
There were two panel discussions during the event, both of which were moderated by Lon Hatamiya of The Hatamiya Group.
The first panel focused on agriculture in the global and statewide perspective. Panelists included Gabe Youtsey of UC ANR, Seana Day of Better Food Ventures and The Mixing Bowl Hub, Megan Nunes of Vinsight and John Selep of AgStart.
“One of the key innovations that needs to happen is marrying the ‘strange bedfellows' of data science and the grower and ag community,” said Youtsey, UC ANR's chief innovation officer.
He talked about thinking outside the box on public and private partnerships to create a better ecosystem for collaboration in the California ag tech community. Youtsey also noted that rural broadband connectivity was the limiting factor to bridging the gap between the Central Valley and Silicon Valley, and affirmed that UC ANR's Verde Innovation Network for Entrepreneurship (VINE) was working hard to address this.
“We have the opportunity here to create a world-class innovation hub that will be second-to-none,” he said.
Nunes of Vinsight, a software for winegrowers, stated that “UC Davis research is kind of the first ‘open source' for ag tech and innovation.”
The second panel focused on the regional and local perspective of agriculture. The panelists were Justin Siegel of the UC Davis Genome Center, Frank Muller of Muller Ranch, Dennis Donohue of Western Growers, and Ken Hiatt of the City of Woodland and The Food Front.
Siegel indicated that the tech industry is beginning to hit a steady state now and doesn't have as much exponential growth as before, but there are still huge numbers of entrepreneurs flooding into it.
“Ag tech needs to capitalize on educating them about ag,” he said.
Muller of Muller Ranch, a Yolo County diversified farm consisting of several thousand acres, touched on the importance of technology in agriculture.
“For me, ag tech is finding new ways to produce more with less and to do it more sustainably,” he said.
Woodland officials have already identified a 351-acre site for a mixed-use research park about eight miles north of UC Davis, where both commercial and residential development will be modeled after other successful tech parks near research universities in California. The only difference will be that this one will be focused on agricultural technology and will provide a place for new companies to incubate, grow, collaborate and prosper.
Related reading about creating Northern California's Ag Innovation Hub:
https://www.comstocksmag.com/longreads/woodland-way
http://www.dailydemocrat.com/business/20180130/woodland-as-ag-hub-topic-of-forum
UC ANR is a sponsoring partner of The Mixing Bowl's FOOD IT event taking place Tuesday, June 27, at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View.
Participants will explore the different ways in which information technology is being applied to a broad range of food and agriculture challenges.
VP Glenda Humiston will be moderating a panel called “The Deans' List of Food/AgTech Topics” that will feature food and agriculture university deans Helene Dillard from UC Davis, Andrew Thulin from Cal Poly and Wendy Wintersteen from Iowa State.
"Overall, FOOD IT will gather 300 people, from food producers, entrepreneurs, thought leaders, venture capitalists, industry executives, researchers and non-profits, representing all aspects of the food system for a highly interactive day," said Gabe Youtsey, chief innovation officer.
Speakers and participants include representatives from food and retail companies including Airbnb, Analog Devices, AT&T, Bowles Farming Company, Forbes, Campbell's, Coca-Cola, Driscoll's, Google, Land O' Lakes, Mattson, Rabobank, Recology, Syngenta, Upfront Ventures, Walmart, Western Digital, Yamaha and many more. You can read more about the event at http://mixingbowlhub.com/events/food-fork-farm.
To register for FOOD IT, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/food-it-fork-to-farm-tickets-30230557411. Use discount code “17STMB" for 70 percent off (just $75 for the day).