Episode 5 of 6 – How Investment Models Affect AgTech. The global food system faces serious problems – environmental, social and commercial. This six-part podcast series seeks to unravel these complex interrelationships asking how we can better align the interests of the environment, farmers, entrepreneurs and investors, allowing new Agtech solutions to address these critical challenges. This episode examines the way investors and how they invest affects priorities for AgTech ventures. The podcast begins by understanding the most prominent and influential method of investing, that of Venture Capitalism. It explains why this model is unsuitable for many important and promising AgTech ventures, and considers other alternatives, including Angel Investing, Crowd Funding, and structured methods of converting between equity and debt. We explore the power dynamics that comes with raising investment and investigate the idea that the status quo for how we invest in AgTech startups drives a chain of extraction that starts with the environment, but extends right through the agricultural sector and the entrepreneurial ventures themselves. Featured in this Episode • Rasmus Hartmann, Copenhagen Business School • Peter Herz, Food System 6 and 1st Course Capital • Sarah Nolet, AgThentic and Tenacious Ventures • Aunnie Patton Power, Intelligent Impact and Saïd Business School • Wayne Gordon, UBS • Ben Honan, Climate KIC • Vicki Saunders, SheEO Further Reading The following resources are those I found helpful or were recommended by my interviewees Books (available at https://www.betterworldbooks.com) • Adventure Finance, Aunnie Patton Power. • The Entrepreneurial State by Mariana Mazzucato Online Resources: • https://medium.com/@sexandstartups/zebrasfix-c467e55f9d96 • https://energy.mit.edu/publication/venture-capital-cleantech/ • https://impactalpha.com/10-ways-to-redesign-venture-finance-for-a-more-inclusive-post-covid-world/