Rabo Food & Agri Innovation Fund, a subsidiary of agricultural financial services firm Rabobank, has co-led a €9.5m ($11.2m) funding round for Norway-based farming robotics technology producer Saga Robotics.
The round was co-led by state-owned investment firm Nysnø Climate Investments and private equity firm ADM Capital Europe, and included venture capital firm Propagator Ventures.
Founded in 2016, Saga has built a modular robot called Thorvald which can be configured to automate various farming tasks including the application of anti-fungal treatments to crops and the harvesting of specific varieties of strawberry.
The funding will help the company fulfil an anticipated increase in product orders. Thorvald is based on a prototype designed at Norwegian University of Life Sciences by researchers under Pål From, a professor who also practises at University of Lincoln, in the UK.
Photo courtesy of Saga Robotics.