Elaisian: USD 900,000 bridge raised to launch new round and grow into new markets

The bridge was led by the fund “Fortitude 1780” through its subsidiary Fortitude Group Holding investment in co-investment with Ulixes SGR and the Innova Venture fund of the Lazio Region (Italy), managed by Lazio Innova. The main goal is to significantly strengthen the international growth prospects of the agritech startup and kickstart the next major financing round.

Fortitude Group Holding investment, Ulixes SGR and Innova Venture, along with several business angels, have invested a total of USD 900.000 in Elasian which brings the total amount of investments raised to date by the company at over USD 2.5 milions.

Elaisian is the first decision support system (DSS) that enables farmers to predict olive and vine plant diseases with one week advance and 96% accuracy. Diseases, such as the Olive Fly, Downy Mildew and Vine Moth, represent today the most serious issue encountered by olive and vine producers both in terms of costs and production losses. The company, thanks to its highly effective prediction algorithms, has established itself as a global leader in its specific market and aims to extend its service to all main fruit tree cultivations, also by extending and integrating the full range of precision farming services requested by its customers.

The new investment will enable the company to expand its presence in the Italian and Spanish markets and scale up in other countries where the company is already present, such as Greece, France, Portugal, North Africa and across the Atlantic. The investment, which represents the first step of a new major investment round this year, has already allowed Elaisian to expand the network of sensors provided to farmers, and to launch its range of services into the market of almond cultivation.

According to data from Crunchbase, 2021 was a record year for agtech, with nearly $5bn invested in the sector in 440 VC-backed startup funding deals. This far exceeds the $3.3bn invested in 422 deals in 2020. In the last two years, the Italian market of agritech services has continued its path of growth from €1.3 billion at the end of 2020 to €1.6 billion in 2021 (+23%).

“For Innova Venture this is our second investment in Elaisian, a very promising agritech company from the Lazio region of Italy” said Andrea Ciampalini, General Manager of Lazio Innova. “The objective of the Innova Venture fund, now at its eighteenth investment, is also to continue to accompany the best Lazio companies that have demonstrated the ability to grow and be able to raise further capital”.

“Agritech is growing exponentially and farmers are increasingly ready to incorporate it into their farms, seeing the advantages they have in terms of cost savings. In our case, the benefits are not just in terms of costs, but above all in terms of improving quantity and quality, since the fruit that will be processed as a final product and then marketed has no traces of disease. This allows farmers to obtain better quality and therefore receive a more profitable remuneration” pointed out Damiano Angelici, CEO and Co-founder of Elaisian. “This is why, in addition to olive and vine, at the World Agri-Tech Summit in San Francisco, the most important world event in agritech, where we are present as a Gold Partner, we decided to launch the almond tree service”.

“The confirmation of a further investment by Fortitude 1780 and Lazio Innova in the capital of Elaisian and the entry of Ulixes SGR are proof of the results obtained so far” said Giovanni Di Mambro, COO and Co-founder of Elaisian. “Above all, this bridge will allow us to focus on the upcoming new investment round. The goal is to continue to be a leader in the science which allows farmers to prevent diseases, make better decisions, save time and money, and improve quality of production”.

Elaisian algorithms

How does the decision support system work? It is based on real time data, collected via an Elaisian weather station, which records the microclimate data of the agricultural field. This data is supplemented by 10 years of historical climate data and field-specific data (such as altitude, sun exposure, variety type and other variables). Combining this mass of data with proprietary algorithms based on agronomic research, Elaisian provides alerts and reports to farmers, which signal the arrival of diseases a week in advance, including information such as the danger of the attack and advice on whether or not to treat.

All users have an app where they can monitor their fields 24 hours a day. The most serious alerts are also sent via whatsapp message.

There are many benefits for farms, such as cost savings (treatments, labour, consumption); increased quality and quantity of production; reduced environmental impact. The system is also extremely easy to use, as it is designed for all types of farmers, with no size limits. The company counts on a team of 22 people, with headquarters in Rome and other operational offices in Milan, Bari and Madrid. Today, more than 1,500 companies in 15 countries around the world use the all-Italian technology and science developed by Elaisian.

Innova Venture is the Venture Capital fund of the Lazio Region in Italy, financed by the resources of the POR FESR 2014/2020 that co-invests, together with independent private investors, directly in the equity of start-ups and companies from all sectors that are located or locating in Lazio. More information on http://www.lazioinnova.it/innova-venture/

LINK:
Fortitude Group Holding http://mdc-investments.com/mdc/investments/
Innova Venture http://www.lazioinnova.it/innova-venture/
Ulixes SGR https://ulixessgr.it/
WDA Legal https://wda.company/