Novagria, start of Cdp Venture Capital project to create innovative agrifood companies

Cdp Venture Capital launches Novagria Ventures: a venture-building project for the agrifood supply chain, with the aim of stimulating the creation of new innovative enterprises capable of supporting the efficiency of the entire market value chain.
Through the Boost Innovation Fund, Cdp Venture Capital - in agreement with the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy - has promoted the establishment of Novagria Ventures, a special-purpose company dedicated to building and launching new business initiatives that will develop products or services for the digitalisation and innovation of SMEs operating in the agrifood supply chain.

With a total investment of €5.65 million, Novagria Ventures' goal will be to create up to 6 new companies in the next 3 years, which will be the subject of subsequent equity investments by Cdp Venture Capital's Boost Innovation Fund of up to approximately €25 million, which could generate an additionality effect on the market with total investments of up to approximately €45 million.

"The new businesses generated," say Cdp, "will be able to contribute to bridging process and technology gaps in companies operating along the entire supply chain, with the aim of increasing operational efficiency, environmental sustainability, food safety and the competitiveness of the sector on a global level.

The agri-food sector garnered investments of around EUR 15 billion globally in 2024, with particular growth in the share in the so-called upstream area, i.e. the initial part of the value chain, which provides the raw materials and innovations that are crucial for the entire sector (e.g. primary production, supply of inputs such as seeds, fertilisers, crop protection agents, machinery, irrigation systems, research and development of new varieties, biotechnology, cultivation methods and genetic innovations). This specific market segment saw investments grow from 31% in 2018 to 38% in 2024.

The Italian market for digital solutions in the agri-food sector is estimated at around EUR 2.3 billion, with an average annual growth rate of 30% over the last five years, demonstrating the growing interest in digital by the primary and processing industry. Among the most frequent digitisation needs of the national supply chain are: food traceability and transparency, B2B commodity market, smart farming.