Pure Harvest Smart Farms is a regional innovator in sustainable agriculture focused on the production of greenhouse fruits and vegetables in the challenging climates of the Arab Gulf region using world-leading Dutch greenhouse growing technologies.
The startup specializes in vine vegetable crops including tomatoes, capsicum, cucumbers, eggplants, strawberries, etc. The company aims to leverage innovative growing technology in order to pioneer year-round production of affordable, premium quality fresh produce.
Established in 2016 in Abu Dhabi, Pure Harvest grows crops in smart greenhouses installed with controlled-environment agriculture technologies to deliver fresh produce that is as they claim cleaner-than-organic.
What are Pure Harvest Smart Farms?
Led by Sky Kurtz, Co-Founder, and CEO, Pure Harvest Smart Farms is a UAE-based, technology-enabled agribusiness.
The company deploys takes advantage of technology to circumvent the UAE’s hostile climate and create an environment that can sustain agriculture. The startup uses high-tech greenhouses, that provide precise climate & environmental controls, enabling increased productivity and reduced waste, including water, energy, and time.
An advanced system analyses data that adjust sunlight, temperature, and humidity, while keeping other variables such as levels of carbon dioxide, water, and airflow in check. There is also an advanced on-site water treatment to ensure food safety.
Pure Harvest packs its own produce: immediately cooling fresh-picked produce to extend shelf life – preserving freshness, firmness, and flavor. However, for now, the company only produces tomatoes.
Background of Founders
Sky Kurtz
Sky completed his Bachelor’s in Finance from Arizona State University. After which he worked at the NewYork-based firm, Lehman Brothers as an Analyst, at Global Leveraged Finance.
In 2009, he went for an MBA at Stanford University. After completing his postgrad he served at a number of international firms in different leading capacities. He co-founded the San Francisco-based Vence Corp in 2016. In the same year, he founded and launched Pure Harvest Smart Farms.
Why Pure Harvest Smart Farms?
In recognition of regional vulnerabilities associated with water scarcity and food import dependence, Pure Harvest has committed itself to resource efficiency and overcoming local climate challenges specifically, heat and humidity during the summer months to deliver European quality to its customers.
According to the startup, its technology is 7x more efficient than typical UAE greenhouse farms and over 30x more efficient than traditional field farming. The startup further claims that 83% of the water that they consume leaves the farm in our food. Furthermore, Pure Harvest grows year-round, even in the harshest summer months.
Funding Secured
Growth Capital: Secured $64.5 million
The startup announced on October 27, 2021, that it had secured $64.5m in growth capital to accelerate the company’s expansion and technology development efforts.
This funding had scaled the company’s cumulative invested capital to $271.6 million. The round was led by Korea’s private investment firm IMM Investment Corp., together with existing investors and management.
Latest Venture Round: Secured $180.5 million
In July 2022, raised USD $180.5 million in its latest growth funding round.
The financing was embraced by a group of key global investors, including:
- Olayan Group from Saudi Arabia, representing the largest-ever convertible financing in the MEASA region
- Citigroup served as the exclusive financial advisor.
This round represents the largest-ever convertible financing in the MEASA region. The funding round was vastly oversubscribed, and a few strategic investors are still in discussions for further upsizing, underscoring the strong institutional investor appetite for Pure Harvest.
One of the company’s latest investors, the Saudi Arabian-based Olayan Financing Company, said the climate and water challenges that Pure Harvest works to overcome are vital to the global economy.
Future Prospects
Focused on helping the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to significantly reduce the reliance on food imports for the past six years, agribusiness tech startup Pure Harvest Smart Farms is now keen to expand its footprint wider afield with plans to open new markets in Asia.
It is also looking to expand its reach across the GCC countries, which comprises Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman.
With its newly raised capital, the company is further looking to invest in research and development as well as investigating a number of new growth initiatives, including product extensions and water-efficient CEA solutions for fodder production.