Ithaca-based CryoBio won a $500,000 investment and the city’s RETRN Bioworks earned a separate $5,000 audience award as the eighth annual Grow-NY food and agriculture business competition concluded in Rochester.
New York City-based Barnwell Bio received the $1 million grand prize, leading seven companies awarded a combined $3 million in investments, according to a news release from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office Friday. The winners were chosen from 20 finalists who presented business plans at the two-day Grow-NY Summit.
Ithaca companies earn investment and audience award
CryoBio is developing technology intended to make crop protection against frost more effective and affordable. The release describes agricultural frost as a threat worsened by climate change and cites projected annual global losses of $50 billion.
RETRN Bioworks received the Wegmans Audience Choice award through voting by summit attendees. That $5,000 award was separate from the seven investment prizes.
Barnwell Bio analyzes the community of microbes in barns to help poultry and livestock producers assess animal health risks and opportunities. Founder and CEO Michael Rhys said the investment would help develop the company while contributing to New York’s food and agriculture economy.
Six other companies share $2 million
Alongside CryoBio, Fooditive BV of Rotterdam, Netherlands, received $500,000. Fooditive uses precision fermentation to produce animal-free casein for dairy applications and a zero-calorie sweetener, licensing its technology to food and beverage manufacturers.
Four companies each received $250,000:
- Earnest Agriculture of Rantoul, Illinois, is developing an artificial intelligence platform that matches microbes to agricultural uses, replacing chemical inputs with active bacteria. The release attributes a 7% yield increase and a threefold farmer return to the approach.
- Frost Methane Labs Co. of Juneau, Alaska, works with livestock farmers to neutralize methane from manure ponds, generate carbon-credit revenue and prevent water from entering the ponds.
- NRGene Canada of Saskatoon, Canada, uses its proprietary AIgenomics technology in a network designed to turn low-value agricultural byproducts into higher-value feed.
- Spectacular Labs Inc. of Berkeley, California, develops automated, AI-enabled molecular pathogen detection systems intended to provide on-site food safety results within one work shift.
Winners must establish regional operations
Each investment winner must commit to expanding jobs, partnerships and operations within Grow-NY’s 22-county region across the Finger Lakes, Central New York and Southern Tier. The requirements include establishing operations in the region for at least one year and providing Cornell University with a modest equity stake to support future food and agriculture entrepreneurship programs.
Cornell’s Center for Regional Economic Advancement administers the accelerator. Before the summit, finalists received mentorship, developed business plans and visited the region to explore connections and opportunities.
Five judges with experience in agriculture, food and beverage production and venture development evaluated the pitches. Their criteria included business viability; team diversity, quality and readiness; customer value; growth potential; agricultural and food innovation; and potential economic impact on the region.
More than 600 people attended the summit in person, with additional viewers watching online. The event included a finalist showcase, networking roundtables and a youth business pitch competition.
This year’s application pool included 96 submissions from New York, nearly one-third of the total. Women-founded businesses accounted for 46% of applications, and 69% came from underrepresented minority founders, according to the release. Four finalists were based within the Grow-NY region.
Program Director Jenn Smith said the relationships developed through mentorship and the summit can be as valuable to finalists as the financial investment, connecting entrepreneurs with investors, partners and regional resources.
The state funds Grow-NY through its Upstate Revitalization Initiative, with support from Empire State Development’s Division of Science, Technology and Innovation. The program is tied to the Finger Lakes Forward, CNY Rising and Southern Tier Soaring economic development strategies.
Across the first seven rounds, the state says 49 winning companies created nearly 330 jobs and raised more than $127 million in follow-on funding. Forty remained operational in New York.
Applications for the next Grow-NY competition are planned to open March 1, 2027.
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