In the News

• Transformative R&D leader with diverse scientific and business background to join Indigo and guide agriculture technology efforts

Boston, Massachusetts, September 28, 2017 – Indigo Ag, Inc., a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, announces today the appointment of Dr. Jonathan McIntyre as Indigo’s Head of Research and Development. Dr. McIntyre will lead the company’s efforts to discover, launch, and accelerate the adoption of sustainable technologies in agriculture.

By Lucia Maffei

By Kelly J. O'Brien

By Frank Vinluan

By Andy Rosen

By Brian Gormley

• Latest funding round will support Indigo’s continued investment in plant microbiome research, development of software and data tools, and rapid commercial expansion

Boston, Massachusetts, September 26, 2017 – Indigo Ag, Inc., a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, announces the first closing of $156 million in its Series D financing, doubling the company’s total capital raised to over $300 million. New investors, including Baillie Gifford and Activant Capital, join the company’s founder and first investor, Flagship Pioneering, and existing investor, the Alaska Permanent Fund, in this closing. J.P. Morgan acted as sole placement agent to Indigo on this transaction. This latest round will support Indigo’s commitment to building a new kind of agriculture company — one that is focused on improving farmer profitability, environmental sustainability, and consumer health.

• Indigo Wheat™ demonstrates an average yield improvement of 15.7% in expected conditions and 8.3% across all conditions in the water-stressed target region of Kansas
• Indigo announces the intention to contract with leading farmers to produce 10.5 million bushels of Indigo Wheat™ for a 30 cent per bushel premium

Boston, Massachusetts, August 29, 2017 – Indigo Ag, Inc., a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, released preliminary data from its microbial seed treatment for wheat. Indigo’s second commercial product, Indigo Wheat™ was launched in the fall of 2016 on approximately 20,000 acres across multiple states and was recently harvested. The seed treatment, developed from naturally occurring, in-plant microbes, increases the productivity of wheat plants by improving plant tolerance to water stress.

• Respected finance and business development executive to join Indigo

Boston, Massachusetts, August 21, 2017 - Indigo Ag, Inc., a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, announces today the appointment of Jeff Poulton as the company’s Chief Financial Officer. Indigo’s newest leader will manage the company’s financial operations and support its growth aspirations, bringing with him extensive experience in finance, investor relations, and strategy.

By Eileen Mignoni

By Asma Khalid

• Esteemed leader responsible for sustainable innovations in the food industry to join Indigo
• Indigo's Board grows to six industry experts, poised to help drive company growth

Boston, Massachusetts, July 12, 2017 – Indigo Ag, Inc., a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, announces today the appointment of Dr. Mehmood Khan, Vice Chairman and Chief Scientific Officer of PepsiCo, to its Board of Directors. Alongside other members, Dr. Khan will help support the company’s mission with his years of experience leading innovative and sustainable agriculture and nutrition initiatives.

What are the most exciting innovations companies are working on around the world? David Perry, CEO and Director of Indigo Agriculture, participates in an exclusive Q&A with the 2017 World Economic Forum Technology Pioneers — a group of 30 global companies who are pioneering technology and innovation.

By David Perry

• The World Economic Forum has announced its selection of the world’s 30 most promising Technology Pioneers of 2017
• Companies were selected for their potential to significantly impact business and society through new technologies, as well as to advance the Fourth Industrial Revolution
• Indigo was chosen for its proven potential to transform agriculture in a way that supports growers, consumers, and the environment
• The full list of recognized Technology Pioneers can be viewed here

Boston, Massachusetts, June 14, 2017 – Indigo, a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, was chosen among hundreds of candidates as one of the World Economic Forum’s “Technology Pioneers,” a selection of the world’s most innovative companies. A mission-driven company, Indigo is bringing naturally derived products to market that allow for crops to better withstand environmental stress, while also engaging in a shared-risk business model with farmers to improve grower profitability worldwide.

By Ben Potter

By Curt Woodward

• The Indigo Partners™ program gives growers access to innovative ag technologies, including Indigo’s microbial products
• With partner growers, Indigo will assess, validate, and determine the impact of new technologies based on field data and grower experience
• This program will serve as a broad-reaching R&D platform for growers and innovators in the agriculture industry

Boston, Massachusetts, April 25, 2017 –Indigo, a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, today announced the launch of Indigo Partners™. The 2017 program involves collaborating with 25 leading growers and agronomic experts across the United States to evaluate agricultural technologies, including Indigo’s microbial seed treatments, on over 15,000 acres. The Indigo Partners program shares company success with growers through equity grants. With the data and insights gathered from growers’ fields, Indigo aims to bring products to market that will profoundly improve both grower profitability and the way that seven billion people are fed. 

• Accomplished executives bring additional expertise in agriculture, technology, and food

Boston, Massachusetts, April 3, 2017 - Indigo, a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, announces today the appointment of three new senior executive leaders reporting directly to Chief Executive Officer and Director David Perry. Indigo also announces the appointment of John Gehring, former Chief Financial Officer of Conagra Brands, to its Board of Directors. New team members bring deep and diverse experience, and strengthen the organization capabilities in agriculture, technology, and food.

By Alexandra Ossola

View the interview with Greg Sword, professor of entomology at Texas A&M, on KBTX.

• Beneficial microbes—referred to as endophytes—are sourced in nature and can be re-introduced into the plant through seed coating to improve plant health in agriculture      
• Researchers at Indigo and the Austrian Institute of Technology demonstrated that a novel spray technique on flowers enables the transfer of beneficial microbes into its seeds     
• The plants grown from the seeds produced by the treated flowers demonstrated improved growth and increased yield 

Boston, Massachusetts, February 28, 2017 - Indigo, a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help growers sustainably feed the planet, announced today the publication of research to improve the microbiome of crop plants. Plants depend upon a complex environment that contains beneficial bacteria and fungi for healthy growth and development. Some microbes that live within the plant itself are known as ‘endophytes’ and are fundamental to the health of plants. Until now, data have shown that these beneficial microbes can be incorporated into plants via association with the soil, or by coating endophytes directly onto seeds.  

By Clive Cookson

• Indigo™ Cotton demonstrated an average yield improvement of 11% in the target environment of West Texas
• Farmers experienced productivity gains in diverse growing conditions without increased use of water or agricultural chemicals
• Novel R&D platform and economic proposition enable continuous innovation in cotton and other crops

Boston, Massachusetts, January 9, 2017 - Indigo, a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help growers sustainably feed the planet, announced preliminary data from its first commercial product, Indigo™ Cotton. Launched in the spring of 2016 on approximately 50,000 acres across multiple states, Indigo Cotton is a seed treatment based on naturally occurring, in-plant microbes (endophytes). Indigo Cotton has been developed to help increase water use efficiency, with the goal of improving yields when plants are growing under water stress.

At the former Hood dairy plant, scientists working for Indigo Agriculture are trying to coax bacteria and fungi to produce supercharged versions of everyday plants. If they succeed, farmers could begin harvesting crops that require less water and fewer pesticides, all without having to mess with a plant’s DNA. There’s a lot of money betting they can pull it off.

At Indigo, we seek to partner with academic institutions worldwide in their research dedicated to the plant microbiome. These partnerships are essential as we work to bring innovative microbial products to growers. We are always eager to expand our network of academic collaborators, and are excited to share this news of our recent partnership with Flinders University in South Australia.

By Sarah Zhang

By Brian Gormley

A couple of Arkansans are key parts of a Massachusetts agritech research firm's plans to spend some $100 million to help farmers raise crops on less water and eventually help feed the planet's population more efficiently.

By Greg Ryan

Boston, Massachusetts, July 21, 2016 — Indigo, a company dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet, announced today that it has closed a $100 million Series C investment, the largest private equity financing in the agriculture technology sector. The round was led by the $54 billion Alaska Permanent Fund, with participation from previous investors, including Flagship Ventures, Altitude Life Science Ventures and members of the management and board. The new funds will be applied to expand ongoing research and development efforts, to extend Indigo’s team, and to scale commercial operations in preparation for the launch of the company’s second product offering later this year. As part of its long­term commitment to Indigo, the Alaska Permanent Fund also intends to invest a similar amount in Indigo’s future financings.

By Olivia Vanni

By Dylan Martin

By Editorial Staff

By Dan Primack

By Mike Orcutt

By Iris Dorbian

By Signe Brewster 

By Alex Brokaw

By Heather Somerville

By Frank Vinluan

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By Lauren Manning

By Ariel Schwartz

By Curt Woodward

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By Natalie Shoemaker

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By Adele Peters

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By Beth Kowitt

By Mike Orcutt

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By Matthew Lynley