Dear Friends of the Mofet Venture Accelerator,
Investing in start-ups is not a new phenomenon in the financial arena. While Internet, communications and social media start-ups are sexy, if we don't have enough food, all these other things will be of secondary importance. We at Mofet made a decision to invest in early-stage companies in the agricultural sector for two important reasons:
1. Natural resources for growing and providing food are under more and more pressure as populations increase.
2. Global climate changes challenge all the resources we have.
In the year and a half since we started attracting young agriculture technology companies to our incubator, we've seen an increased awareness in the mainstream about "agritech." Global technology companies like IBM have appeared at events in the agricultural sector. Angel investors are starting to pay attention to agritech, too...and invest.
We know Israel has the knowledge and expertise to grow food in spite of its extremely limited land and water resources. Out of necessity, the country's researchers and entrepreneurs have discovered creative solutions to use the resources we have much more efficiently and intelligently. We believe this sector is where we can lead in the coming years. Why not join us?
Best regards,
Nitza Kardish, Ph.D.
CEO, Mofet Venture Accelerator
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Mofet Companies Present at U.S. Road Show
CoreBone CEO Ohad Schwartz and SensoGo CEO Tal Anker participated in the five-day Trendlines Medtech U.S. Road Show in March, where they presented to and met with angel investors and potential strategic partners.
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Ohad Schwartz, CEO of CoreBone, presents to investors during the U.S. Medtech Road Show
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Magdent Participates in IDS in Germany
Magdent presented at the International Dental Show in Cologne, Germany, in March. Magdent is looking for distributors to collaborate on commercialization efforts of their advanced, CE-certified healing cap.
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Yossi Shechter, COO of Magdent, describes the company's healing cap to a prospective distributor.
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GreenSpense Goes to Paris
This February, Gadi Har-shai and Amir Biran of GreenSpense showcased EcoSleeve at the Aerosol and Dispensing Forum in Paris. GreenSpense's eco-friendly aerosol dispensing sleeve attracted more than 100 visitors, including global leaders in cosmetics (Estee Lauder and L'Oreal) and packaging (Precision and Fareva). "The positive feedback we received confirmed the direction we have taken our product -- a sleeve that fits on a dispenser -- provides continuous dispensing without the need for pressurized containers," notes Har-shai.
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Amir Biran (r) of GreenSpense meets with booth visitors at ADS in France.
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Catalyst AgTech Makes Headlines
Catalyst AgTech pairs catalysts with toxic pesticides to cause a "self-destruct" mechanism in agrochemical formulations. The company was featured in the recent Jerusalem Post article, "Institute develops process to protect groundwater." Read the full article.
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5 Cities, 5 Days: The 1st Trendlines Agritech U.S. Road Show
Are you an angel investor interested in meeting five of our most promising agritech companies seeking investment? The Trendlines Group (Mofet's parent company) is organizing an agritech-focused road show.
From April 22 to 26, Catalyst AgTech, EdenShield, MiRobot, Organis, and SolChip will present to angels, VCs, and industry experts about their exciting agriculture technologies at events scheduled in New York City, Detroit, Denver, St. Louis, and Memphis. For details about the Road Show events, contact Jen Maidenberg.
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Sol Chip Founder Rami Friedlander presents the company's solar battery technology at a Trendlines U.S. Road Show in 2012.
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Steve Rhodes Invited To Participate on Panel at Global AgInvesting 2013
Steve Rhodes, chairman of Mofet and CEO of The Trendlines Group, has been invited to participate in one of the panel discussions at the 5th annual Global AgInvesting conference (April 29-May 2 in New York City). The conference presents
"a comprehensive overview of agriculture investment opportunities, risks and return profiles across all major global production regions" and features sessions about "ag venture capital, technologies, water opportunities, aquaculture," and more.
For the first time, a "GAI AgTech Investment Summit" has been added to agenda of the Global AgInvesting event as a result of the burgeoning AgTech sector, and venture capital and private equity opportunities.
Save the Date: December 1-6, 2013
Tour Israel's Agritech Industry & Attend our Annual "Agrivest" Conference
Following the success of last year's Agrivest Conference, we've turned Agrivest™ into an annual event. This year,
Agrivest will be a week-long opportunity to gain a first-hand overview of Israel's agritech industry.
This unique six-day intensive event, which will take place from December 1 - 6, 2013, is intended to give participants an overview of Israel's world-leading agritech industry. For more details about the Agrivest Conference 2013, contact
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Shalom Simchon, former Israel Minister of Industry, Trade & Labor, opens Agrivest 2012, a joint venture of Mofet, Israel New Tech, the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor, The Israel Export Institute, and the Ministry of Agriculture.
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Nitza Kardish, Panel Participant at Yeda Conference
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As a Weizmann Institute of Science graduate playing a role in the Israeli science industry, Mofet CEO Nitza Kardish was invited to participate on a panel at the Yeda Life Sciences Conference in December 2012. Nitza stands with (l to r) Andromeda Biotech CEO Shlomo Dagan, Yeda R&D CEO Amir Naiberg, Chairman of BioCancell Aaron Schwartz, and Protalix CEO David Aviezer.
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Mofet Makes a Move
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Trendlines COO Yossi Ron and Mofet Business Development Manager Sarai Kemp chat in Mofet's spacious new offices in Efrat.
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Mofet Venture Accelerator Hosts Shalom Simchon
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In February, Minister of Industry, Trade & Labor Shalom Simchon visited Mofet and spoke with staff and company CEOs. Simchon meets with Yaniv Kitron (r), CEO of EdenShield. Simchon is also a former minister of agriculture.
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Welcome to Our Newest Company
BioFishency is developing a complete water treatment system for aquaculture systems. Their system uses a "plug-and-play" solution enabling the production of more fish using less water and land.
Cobi Levanon is BioFishency's CEO.
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