Ceres Imaging, the aerial imagery provider that helps growers make proactive decisions to maximize resources, yields and profits, today announced the close of a record-breaking fiscal year that included new partnerships and research, industry recognition, key hires, and the launch of transformational new products.
"I'm proud of everything we've accomplished this year," said Ceres Imaging CEO Ashwin Madgavkar. "We're growing quickly, and I believe much of our success is due to our focus on helping growers solve meaningful problems at the farm level. We're not just selling images, we're selling decision making with confidence."
Ceres Imaging takes lead in US agriculture aerial imagery market
In 2019, Ceres Imaging significantly expanded its operations in irrigated row crops throughout the central and western US. It also nearly doubled its share of the California specialty crop market, going from managing 10% to 18% of all specialty crop acres in the state.
The company also established a new headquarters in downtown Oakland, California; rebranded identity and website; grew from 70 to 100 employees; and made some key additions to its senior team, including:
- Senior Vice President of Product Simon Hayhurst, a senior leader with expertise in machine learning and a track record of delivering strong growth by transforming product strategy for publicly-traded companies.
- Vice President of Finance and Operations Manu Diwakar, an experienced CFO, COO and Harvard Business School graduate with a demonstrated history of leading venture-backed startups to successful exits.
Ceres Imaging also received some significant recognition and additional research validation in 2019. Including the company:
- Is one of four finalists in the water category of the Zayed Global Sustainability Prize, a global award that recognizes and rewards impactful, innovative and inspiring sustainability solutions. Winners will be announced later this month.
- Was included in the SVG Ventures' THRIVE Top 50 annual ranking of the world's leading visionary agriculture technology companies, "exemplifying the best in agriculture and food-focused innovation."
- Was named one of 12 precision farming companies to watch by Precision Ag.
- Listed in Venturebeat as 10 technology trends that will impact our lives in 2020 by Pegasus Tech Venture CEO, Anis Uzzman.
- Launched new research partnerships with the University of Illinois, Kansas State University, the Iowa Soybean Association, and Texas A&M University, among others.
The company also made significant new additions to its technology offerings in preparation for the 2020 growing season, including:
- Additions to the Specialty Crop Analytics Suite, including a new year-over-year change analysis to help growers identify weak areas in their orchards.
- New features in the Center-Pivot Analytics Suite, including an expanded zone creation tool that uses colored infrared data to understand soil variation in the field, create zone maps, and guide off-season nutrient applications.
- Improved chlorophyll index: Improved accuracy of this nutrient management layer, now standard for all customers.
- Offline imagery and enhanced flight details: Full app features in the field — including notes and pictures — even without cell service. Enhanced transparency of flight schedules, confirmed flight dates, completed flights, and delivered imagery.
"More than anything, imaging allows us to be more efficient," said Ceres Imaging customer Alex Bergwerff, farm manager of Winters Farming, Inc. in a feature interview with Lauren Smiley, New York Times. "Ceres Imaging technology lets our workers focus on the problem areas rather than endlessly driving and walking the crop rows."
"As new environmental regulations like the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act push farmers to drastically increase resource efficiency, we believe Ceres Imaging will be an increasingly vital tool in farmers' toolkits," said Gary Survis, Operating Partner at Insight Partners.