Verdelis Investments CEO Bob Trogele, PhD, recently joined hosts Kevin Van Trump and Todd Loechler on the debut installment of their new podcast, FARMCON Conversations: Ag Innovators Unfiltered.
In a wide-ranging conversation, Bob described Verdelis Investments’ overall strategy in ag-tech investment and also touched on his own “learnings” gleaned from many years in agribusiness.
One is the importance of a fledgling ag-tech company to consider its exit strategy, or how, when, and to whom it might ultimately be sold. He said this consideration is not much different than the act of trading in the stock market — the key is knowing not only when to buy but also when to sell. At the same time, there is no daily index of a startup’s market performance as there are with publicly traded companies on stock exchanges, which is more the reason startups must stay keenly focused on its potential exit strategy. “Timing is everything in our business,” Bob said.
He said a second consideration that often gets lost amid the hubbub of ag-tech startups and their subsequent search for investors are two critical questions about the technology itself: Does the farmer want it? And: Is the farmer willing to pay for it?
Third, internationalization can prove to be the undoing of ag-tech startups, Bob said, as they often must expand quickly and consequently run out of cash. Bob noted there is enormous potential for ag-tech adoption outside of the U.S. — in India, for instance. However, pursuing these opportunities must be done with caution, market expertise, and care.
Click here to listen to the full FARMCON podcast with Bob (interview begins at 34:30).
Looking ahead, Bob also will serve as a panel guest at FARMCON 2026, Jan. 7-8 in Kansas City, MO.