A programme of business support, providing vital skills for entrepreneurial success, is making its debut at the CropTec Show on 29th and 30th November.

The Inspiring Agritech Innovation (IAI) programme will be launched by the Royal Agricultural University's Farm491 agritech incubation hub at the show. With a series of boot camp style workshops to progress agritech R&D and technology solutions to drive food production efficiency in the UK and with a dedicated audience of forward thinking farmers, this is the perfect platform for an official launch.

With boot camps starting in early 2018, the IAI initiative by Farm491 aims to facilitate a new wave of agricultural entrepreneurs. Faced with a growing global population, there is increasing pressure to find new ways of producing more efficiently and there are real opportunities to exploit 'cross-over technologies' not traditionally used in farming to harness food production growth. This includes areas such as informatics, satellite imaging, remote sensing, meteorology and precision farming.

The IAI programme is in search of aspiring individuals, early stage start-ups or SMEs with an agritech proposition that needs support and expertise to get it off the ground. By taking advantage of specialist two-day workshops, innovators will be exposed to a network of invaluable support and mentoring. Business support is modelled around the existing enterprise programme at Royal Agricultural University.

There will be a rolling timetable of group workshops led by experienced agritech coaches to help develop a sustainable business model in the first stage of the journey. Delegates will then have the option of continuing to one-to-one engagement with mentors over a period of 12 months

The two-day workshops are specifically designed for:

Individuals who are considering starting an agritech business

Founders /managers of agritech enterprises which are less than six months old

Applicants will need to detail their business proposition and the product/ service they hope to launch/ develop. All projects proposed will be assessed for potential growth and long-term sustainability. The selection panel will be looking for innovation technology that can be applied to agriculture.

Dr Ali Hadavizadeh, Programme Manager, Farm491, said; "The Farm491 community is a dynamic, vibrant environment where agritech solutions are born, tested and developed. We have supported a variety of businesses, of all scales, on their journey to success. The Inspiring Agritech Innovation programme is our latest initiative aimed to foster innovative agritech advancement at startup stage. The programme will identify promising candidates, startups and SMEs at the early stages of development. Those fortunate to fulfil the criteria will receive a schedule of workshops, mentoring and free business support to assist and magnify their growth."

Applicants can now register interest online: https://farm491.com/iai/