An interview with Matija Zulj, founder of Agrivi, one of Forward Fooding’s top 500 Food Tech startups.

Matija Zulj, founder of Agrivi

It’s time to put a face to the name…

We asked our FoodTech 500 top-runners to give us a bit of insight into how they started out as a company and their thoughts on the role of technology in Food innovation. Meet Matija, the mastermind behind Agrivi, a global AgTech company with the vision to help farmers reach sustainable, resource-efficient and profitable production through a farmmanagement software. Let’s see what Matija had to say.

So tell us a little bit more about you! Where did the idea for your FoodTech company come from?

Matija: After working in the ICT industry I have started a blueberry farm. During the setup of the blueberry farm, I was trying to get the best practice knowledge on how to grow blueberries, but neither 2-month googling nor speaking with agricultural experts could help with that. Also, I wanted to track all activities on the farm to understand what was done good and what were wrong moves, but in 2012, there was no simple, affordable and complete online application that could support these farming activities. That was the moment when the idea of Agrivi was born – the idea of complete farm management software that helps farmers to manage all farming activities and get the best practice knowledge in one central place.

How is tech central to your business?

Matija: Agrivi is an Agtech company fully focused on delivering digital agriculture technology to the entire agri-food value chain to help them achieve sustainable and resource-efficient food production. Our core product is the global market-leading farm management software used by farmers, food companies, producers of seeds, fertilizers and crop protection, as well as governments across the world.

Why do you think it’s important to see the food industry embrace tech?

Matija: Everything we do is about people. It is about people currently living on the planet, but also new generations that are coming. Consumers are the ones who have the power over the food industry and as much as they demand, that much the food industry provides. Awareness about food health, nutrition and sustainability are rising continuously and this drives the need for traceability across the agri-food value chain. Also, rough market and climate conditions are bringing a new production environment that demands maximum efficiency to ensure profitability. In such an environment, there is no efficient production and traceability without technology. Educating consumers is the most important factor as this creates a butterfly effect on technology use in the food industry. And let’s not forget, people who work in the agri-food industry are also consumers.

Want to know more? Check out Agrivi’s full profile here.

Congratulations again to Agrivi for ranking 3rd in the category “Agtech” of the Foodtech 500 list.

To find out who else made it into the FoodTech 500; the top Food Tech companies in the world, click here.

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