A new business studio in Asia has been designed by Cargill to support local founders with investments. With the support of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), Cargill’s solutions will bring to the market to accelerate innovation for the food and agriculture industry in Asia-Pacific.
Through this three-year partnership, Cargill will develop a portfolio of at least five new startups for which the company is already hiring experienced entrepreneurs.
The new startups will be focused on pressing industry challenges such as improving access to market data for smallholder farmers or developing modern and fair food supply solutions specially designed for South Asia. Therefore, the mission of these new businesses will be to help farmers and food operators overcome their greatest challenges and capitalize on new opportunities. For example, farmers with inconsistent crop yield, and low access to credit or financing could improve their productivity and profitability through digital solutions. Likewise, small to medium-sized restaurants and retailers can take advantage of the new digital tools to simplify the ingredient supply chain.
“Cargill is combining its deep industry expertise with the speed and agility of a startup approach to launch the digital business studio. Together, we aim to solve some of the region’s toughest food and agriculture challenges in novel ways. With Singapore prominence and reputation as a vibrant agri-innovation hub, we are pleased to collaborate with EDB on this initiative. We are confident that the digital business studio will encourage boldness, creativity and inspiration to advance the sustainability of the region’s food and agriculture sector,” said Ross Hamou-Jennings, chair of Asia Pacific at Cargill.
“We are excited to partner with Cargill in building Singapore ventures that have the potential to become globally leading agri-food businesses,” said Choo Heng Tong, executive vice president, New Ventures and Innovation, EDB. “Cargill can provide significant advantages for these ventures through its deep domain expertise, customer networks and global scale, while leveraging Singapore’s connectivity to key markets and R&D capabilities. These ventures will be at the forefront of innovations, complementing Singapore’s development of novel agri-food solutions and contributing to global food resiliency efforts.”
The digital business studio builds upon Cargill's existing investment in innovation and engagement with Asia. The company now has four innovation centers across the continent: Singapore, Gurgaon, Beijing and Shanghai.
