Soil Tech Research Project
Promoting sustainable agriculture Market research on agri-tech startups
2020.11
Request from a global general trading company. In-house VentureAn in-house venture project was to launch a start-up related to sustainable agriculture. We conducted research on how the benefits of the product would be accepted in the European market by interviewing key people engaged in agriculture, food, and investment respectively.
WHY
To launch a startup related to sustainable agriculture in an internal venture project.
FOCUS
There is a growing interest in sustainable agriculture in terms of soil health, maintaining biodiversity, and fixing carbon dioxide. A Japanese trading company’s in-house venture project was looking to launch a startup related to sustainable agriculture to capture these changes. We conducted interviews with people involved in advanced community farming in the Netherlands and reported on the changes taking place at the cutting edge of the market. At the same time, we researched trends in the agribusiness and food business happening in Europe, such as the European Green Deal.
PROCESS
・Market research
・Depth interviews with potential customers
・Proposed business model and strategy.
・Design research for prototype production
OUTCOME
We helped build a business model based on the latest European policies and the latest trends, contributing to the step-up of the in-house venture. It also led to the introduction of the prototype to environmentally conscious European farmers.
