Happy Tuesday… and some exciting news this morning as our AgriTech Report launches tomorrow which looks at the sustainable food system of the future.
In today’s edition:
🖼 The WWF’s NFT-shaped controversy
🧫 Lab-grown meat’s (policy) breakthrough
🚜 Our AgriTech report
Big Business (2-minute read)
Plans to rollout rapid electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in UK retail parks
A recent report warns that the UK’s ban on fossil fuel car sales from 2030 is unrealistic without improved access to EV charging infrastructure. Real estate firm, Ediston, has partnered with EV charging network operator, Osprey Charging, to install new rapid charging points across retail parks in the UK. These rapid charging points are able to charge-up an EV to travel 100miles in just 10 mins.
So what? Tackling range anxiety (the fear of running out of power on a journey) is a major hurdle for EV adoption.
A Global EV Challenge… As EV sales doubled their market share in 2021. Yet, cheaper fossil-fuel powered cars still dominate sales in growing economies like India.
Dow Jones Launches Sustainability Data to Optimise Global Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Investing
Dow Jones announced the launch of its sustainability data to help the global financial community understand the performance and impact of a company’s Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices and make sustainable investment decisions.
Unique Selling Point: Many rating providers focus solely on company-disclosed data = opaque. Dow Jones supplements this data with analysis of daily news sentiment from thousands of global news sources = sustainable investment decisions based on information that is more timely and transparent.
Sticky business: ESG assets soared are predicted to grow to $53 trillion by 2025 (a third of all global assets under management). Novel methods to make ESG ratings more accurate are great but there is still a need for consistent company-disclosed data – the focus of the hotly anticipated International Sustainability Standards Boards.
🤖 Future of Tech (1-minute read)
Big policy changes put focus on lab-grown meat in China
Demand for livestock produce (e.g. meat) is expected to grow by 40% by 2050. Add to this that intensive livestock production is already the world’s 2nd largest contributor of Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, it’s clear drastic changes are needed.
China’s 5 year plan: Cultured (i.e. lab grown) meat has been included for the first time in China’s 5-year plan which sets the country’s economic goals.
Cultured Meat is Pinpointed… for R&D research and investment into tech to produce cultured meat in a safe and cost-effective way.
Why’s this important for cultured meat worldwide:
- Development of tech to scale production to make it more cost competitive
- Provide a model for production and supply that other countries can learn from
- Support in creating regulation that’s needed for cultured meat to go mainstream
WWF Non-Fungible tokens controversy
Non-Fungible Tokens, or NFTs, are revolutionising the art market right now. They enable unique virtual collectables that cannot be replaced or copied. WWF just created Non-Fungible Animals, limited number of crypto artworks that will be auctioned to raise funding for conservation. However, the initiative caused controversy…
Controversy:
- NFT’s are energy intensive, analysts estimate that they consumes 75kWh in their lifetime = 2.5 days of power to the average US household
- WWF argues they’re using a more energy-efficient blockchain called Polygon, they are tackling these concerns.
Our take: Polygon is built around Ethereum and relies upon it. It’s like riding a bike on top of a bus and pretending you’re not taking the bus. HOWEVER, conservation remains grossly underfunded and novel methods are critical to attracting new donors.
💡Start-up Spotlight (1-minute read)
BCG and the World Economic Forum just released the CEO Guide to Net Zero detailing how companies are using their net-zero transition as a business opportunity for a sustainable competitive advantage. Here are the key insights:
- Corporate climate action has accelerated – Over 2,000 companies have set science-based targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), up from only 116 in 2015.
- Remains insufficient – Only 20% of companies both disclose their full-value chain emissions and have emissions reduction targets in place.
- Climate leaders = competitive advantage – They can attract and retain better talent, realize higher growth, save costs, avoid regulatory risk, access cheaper capital, and achieve higher shareholder returns.
- Sizeable emissions reductions at net-zero cost – Almost all companies can realise at least a third of emissions reductions at net-zero cost.
- Climate leaders raise the bar for their industry: If one company moves, others feel pressure to follow = A single company setting ambitious targets can move its entire industry.
TL;DR…
- Corporate action is quicker than ever before but insufficient
- The climate crisis will not be overcome by a few early movers, but their leadership can have an outsized impact.
- Those who do will gain a competitive advantage
💭 Little Bytes
Quote: “Our study has found that Mexico’s access to busy shipping routes and abundant renewable energy potential puts it in a good position to help drive the zero-carbon fuel market.” Olivia Carpenter-Lomax, Future Energy Specialist and Project Lead, Ricardo
Stat: RBC Asset Management survey of fund managers indicates that Europe continues to outpace the world in ESG adoption. While 72% of global investors integrate ESG principles into their investment approach, that number is 99% in Europe
Watch: How the US Women’s soccer/football is a win for gender equality
🗞 In other news…
- The global issuance of green, social sustainability (GSS) and sustainability-linked bonds (SLB’s) are set to reach a record high of $1.35tr in 2022, says Moody’s ESG Solutions. A 36% increase from 2021,
- Global beauty brand Coty has announced it has started making perfume using carbon-captured ethanol, as part of a plan to integrate recycled carbon into most of its fragrance portfolio by 2023.
- The first-ever wireless Electric Vehicle road in the US will be operational in Detroit next year, allowing on the go charging to fight range limitations
- Two long-awaited laws introduced into US congress could finally let ordinary citizens fix their pricey tech items, instead of having to pay the manufacturer (or buy a new one).
- To curb methane leakages from abandoned wells, the White House announced a $1.2b investment to plug 130,000 documented orphaned wells across US oil fields
🎣 The Deal Room
- Texas based – Zeta Energy Closes $23 Million Series A Funding led by Moore Strategic Ventures for its Advanced Lithium Sulfur Battery Technology
- Israel based Agritask raises $26M Series B funding, led by Liechtenstein Group for their platform that drives transparency, insights, and better decision making across the agri-food value chain
- Seattle startup, Cloud Paper has raised $5 million in a venture round. that makes toilet paper and paper towels from bamboo in an effort to slow deforestation,
- mPower Technology, announced that it has raised $10 million in Series B funding, led by Cottonwood Technology Fund for its space based solar technology
- California based Zero Grocery raised $11,800,000 / Seed from Sway Ventures the zero-waste, plastic-free grocery delivery service
