SkySquirrel, the Halifax-area company dedicated to producing agricultural data for the wine industry, has been accepted into the Alltech accelerator for agricultural technology companies in Dublin.
The 15-week program includes a bit of funding plus mentorship sessions at the Dogpatch Labs, a major co-working space for startups in the Irish capital. Most important, it will offer the company a chance to work with specialists in agricultural technology in Europe — one of SkySquirrel’s largest markets.
SkySquirrel uses drones to gather data from agricultural fields, focusing on the highest-margin segment of agriculture, the wine industry.
The Alltech accelerator is the brainchild of Pearce Lyons, the Irish businessman who founded Kentucky-based Alltech and grew it into one of the world’s largest animal health and nutrition companies.
“Having the opportunity to be affiliated with a global leader in agricultural innovation, do business with them, and gain access to their network is extremely valuable to us,” said SkySquirrel co-founder and CEO Richard van der Put in an email.
“Given their global reach and international presence, I’m looking to learn more about how we can increase our international sales and expand into new markets, like Italy, one of the top wine producers in the world.”
At the conclusion of the program, participants will pitch at a “demo day” in Lexington, Ky. According to the Irish tech publication Silicon Republic, 10 companies from around the world were selected from a pool of 183 applicants and SkySquirrel was the only Canadian company accepted.
SkySquirrel is one of a host of Atlantic Canadian startups that are entering accelerators around the world. Earlier this month, WellTrack, the Fredericton company that provides online help with mental health issues, was accepted into the prestigious 500 Startups accelerator in Silicon Valley. Last year, Fredericton-based Chinova Bioworks, which is developing new preservatives made from chitosan, went through another Irish accelerator, IndieBio.
At the Alltech accelerator, the startups will receive free space at Dogpatch, 15,000 British pounds (C$21,000) cash fund and tech perks worth 300,000 British pounds (C$420,000) from companies such as Google, Facebook, SoftLayer and Amazon. Van der Put also said that about 3,000 people, including investors, attend the Demo Day in Kentucky.
Though SkySquirrel is working with clients around the world, its emphasis in the near term will be working on its technology to combat Flavescence Dorée, a disease plaguing southern European vineyards. There is no cure for the disease, which prevents plants from producing grapes; once it occurs, the farmer has no choice but to destroy the vine before it spreads.
“We are seeing very promising results in multiple grape varietals and have seen success with Flavescence Dorée disease detection, with up to 85 per cent accuracy,” said van der Put. “This growing season we are focusing on improving our results across multiple grape varietals and validating the technology on a larger scale, as well as working with academic partners on the scientific validation.”
SkySquirrel last year raised significant amounts of money. It had raised $1 million, with equal contributions from Innovacorp and an unnamed Ontario investor. The company also received a $500,000 low-interest loan from the Atlantic Provinces Opportunities Agency.
