Events

Rabobank-MIT Food & Agribusiness Innovation Prize: Final Pitch Event

The final pitch competition and awards ceremony for the third annual Rabobank-MIT Food & Agribusiness Prize

Hosted by: MIT Food and Agriculture Club

Join the final pitch competition and awards ceremony for the third annual Rabobank-MIT Food & Agribusiness Prize. The judges have narrowed down the initial set of competitors to eight finalist teams. These teams have been matched with mentors and are currently working to develop and refine robust business plans.

Finalists will pitch to compete for first and second place prizes of $15,000 and $10,000, respectively. The audience and judges will hear eight pitches, each followed by a short Q&A, after which the judges will meet privately to determine the winners. The winners will be announced at the end of the evening, following a reception.

The 2018 Rabobank-MIT finalist teams include:

  • QuantiSoil: Point-of-use soil testing system that enables smallholder farmers to measure soil nutrients without depending on laboratories and to optimize fertilizer application to maximize returns
  • Proventus: Helps small and medium farmers to access affordable loans and investors to make profitable returns through technology, disintermediation, and availability of relevant and quality agronomic data
  • Context Insights: Forecasts commodity prices by crowdsourcing price predictions through text message in sub-Saharan Africa
  • AgroRacks: Smart modular farming in the modern data center
  • Cloud Agronomics: Provides custom imaging for growers by integrating proprietary multi-spectral sensors into solar-powered UAVs to mitigate crop stress and improve yield
  • Strella Biotech: Builds biosensing platforms for agricultural applications, operating with greater sensitivity and durability than traditional sensors
  • EatWell: Makes healthy eating more accessible to low-income urban families, reducing cost and inconvenience barriers with a 30 minute, one-pot meal kit
  • PreserveAir: Climate field storage and transport services

Rabobank Group is a global financial services leader providing wholesale, rural and retail banking, leasing, payments, and real estate services in more than 40 countries worldwide. Founded over a century ago, Rabobank today is one of the world’s largest banks with over $750 billion in assets. In North America, Rabobank is a premier bank to the food, beverage and agribusiness industries and a leading renewable energy financier, providing sector expertise, strategic counsel and tailored financial solutions to clients across the entire food value chain.

Details

Wednesday, May 2, 2018
6:30–9:30 pm

Event Schedule:

  • 6:30 pm Registration
  • 6:45 pm Event begins (promptly, so please arrive prior)
  • 7:00–8:15 pm Pitches from finalist teams
  • 8:15–9:15 pm Reception (drinks and hors d’oeuvres)
  • 9:15–9:30 pm Awards ceremony

MIT Samberg Conference Center
50 Memorial Drive, 6th Floor
Cambridge, MA 02142

For more information and to register, visit the event page.