AgTech startup Ground Truth secures $4 million to improve grain analysis for farmers

Additional investors include SaskWorks Venture Fund, Tall Grass Ventures, Golden Opportunities Fund, WTC Investments LP, private investors, and new commitments from undisclosed, existing shareholders.Since beginning operations in January, the Ground Truth team has grown to include 15 employees, creating new jobs in computer vision, mechanical and electrical engineering, software development and analytical chemistry. The images will not only provide information on such baselines as the grains protein and moisture content, but also on roughly 25 other different characteristics.Initially, the technology will be piloted on Canadian Western Red Spring wheat at the Folk familys farm in Holdfast, located between Regina and Saskatoon. But at the end of the day, from a commercial buyers standpoint, its also advantageous to have something that would be standardized.Sean OConnor, the managing director of Conexus Venture Capital and Emmertech, said that finding an experienced team led by a repeat founder in the AgTech space is extremely rare in Canada. We believe that Ground Truth is the missing piece in helping give meaningful clarity to the farmer on the outcomes of their precision agriculture practices.Emmertech closed $60 million for its AgTech fund in January. The fund, which wants to make Canada a dominant player in the global AgTech industry, has invested in crop management startup Ukko Agro and fertilizer-focused Lucent Biosciences.