Who we are.
AgTech OS is a value-added agriculture technology company at the intersection of traditional farming operations and advanced computer modeling and simulation systems. At its core, the company is positioned to improve the operational economics for agricultural producers while enabling the decarbonization of farming operations. To meet these ends, AgTech OS is focused on oilseed crops and their utilization to produce
feed additives, biodiesel and specialty chemicals. The company will utilize next generation solar technologies to power the operations and leverage advanced measurement, computer modeling, simulation and control systems to optimize production. Moreover, the models developed by AgTech OS represent a fourth product
line that can serve to support industrial operations focused on emissions reductions and real-time process optimization. Collectively the operation aims for a sustainable net-zero carbon footprint in the efforts to produce biofuels and feed, reducing the environmental impacts of agricultural operations while providing translatable tools for the optimization of industrial operations.
AgTech OS brings opportunity to the farmer.
Rotation crops are needed to maintain soil health and support productivity but introduce both agronomic and economic challenges for farmers. Rotation crops generally feed smaller, more specialized markets. As a result, less collective effort has been spent on the development of robust varieties and agronomic practices that reduce in-field competition and enhance yields. The net result of these realities are decreases in the production capacity and enhanced volatility in the economics of rotation crops.
Canola is a relatively rare example of a rotation crop where there has been a significant effort on varietal development and agronomic practice. While common in many northern areas of North America, production is often constrained by the sales channels available to producers. In eastern Washington, canola as a rotation crop has been buoyed by two factors: One is that the herbicidal tolerance of certain varieties helps in efforts to mitigate the impacts of the invasive Italian Rye that is negatively impacting agricultural operations; A second is the opening of a crushing facility in Warden. While this latter factor has created a sales channel for farmers on the Palouse, a more local channel would enhance sustainability, improve profitability and reduce emissions.
AgTech OS brings opportunity to the community.
Whitman County is among the most productive wheat producing regions in the world. However, the economic value of crops grown on the Palouse largely leaves the area with unprocessed crops which are shipped to other regions for value added processing.
This increasingly precarious economic model represents a lost opportunity for the community that supports this productive region. AgTech OS plans to establish a biodiesel facility that will converta local rotation crop (Canola) into value-added products that support the local economy. Once at scale, the facility is projected to
produce 10.8 million gallons of B100 (pure) biodiesel, 60,000 tons of seed meal and 900,000 gallons of a specialty chemical per year. The operations will sustain about 44 direct jobs once fully operational. The total economic impact has been estimated at 464 jobs, $136.2 million in sales and $2.5 million in tax revenue per year to the State of Washington.
AgTech OS brings opportunity to the carbon economy.
The tools, advanced technologies and methodologies to quantify environmental impacts of industrial operations are in their infancy. While many have developed models and, in scientific circles, some have validated measurements in real world systems there are very few examples of real-time environmental monitoring, modeling and industrial process controls.
Through partnerships with Nvidia and the University of Connecticut, AgTech OS is leveraging an expansive suite of diagnostic and predictive tools that build from machine learning methodologies, simulations, and process control integration that collectively serve to optimize and quantify industrial processes. When combined with data on agricultural operations (tonnage of seed produced, acreage, location of harvest, fuel used in production), scalable and translatable models that accurately map an operation’s carbon footprint will provide enabling tools for the emergent carbon economy. These tools will provide AgTech OS and several other industries risk assessment from artificial intelligence that is learning as well as improving with valuable data collected real time.
