Defra
VC Fund
London, United Kingdom
Defra is a VC fund in London focused on AgTech and Farming. Defra is the UK government department responsible for policy and regulations on the environment, food and rural affairs
- Total investments:
- 9
- Last investment:
- Lead investor:
- 78%
Last updated:
For AI agents: llms.txt
Industries Defra invests in
Stages Defra invests in
Countries Defra invests in
Contacts
| Name | Phone | Socials | |
|---|---|---|---|
Andrew Newman
|
|||
Chris Bowles
|
|||
Colin Faulkner
|
|||
Janet Hughes
|
|||
Sarah Burnett
|
Investment Focus
Industry
- AgTech 2 (22%)
- Farming 2 (22%)
- Biotechnology 2 (22%)
- News 1 (11%)
- Social 1 (11%)
Country
- United Kingdom 7 (78%)
- United States 1 (11%)
Team
| Name | Title | Investments | Links | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Andrew Newman
Head of Data & Information Access
|
Head of Data & Information Access | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Chris Bowles
Senior Cloud Infrastructure Enginneer
|
Senior Cloud Infrastructure Enginneer | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Colin Faulkner
Head of International Fisheries and Seafood Trade Policy
|
Head of International Fisheries and Seafood Trade Policy | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Janet Hughes
Programme Director, Future Farming and Countryside Programme
|
Programme Director, Future Farming and Countryside Programme | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Sarah Burnett
Chief Data Architect
|
Chief Data Architect | Total investments: 0 | Find email |
Investments
| Company | Description | Round | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
Concert Bio
|
Concert Bio helps growers harness the vast potential of their plant microbiome. | $133.3K / Grant / Mar 13, 2026 | |
City Harvest
|
City Harvest helps feed those who struggle to put meals on their tables. They deliver fresh fruits and vegetables for free. They provide through food rescue and distribution, education, and other practical, innovative solutions. | $409.3K / Grant / Jun 10, 2025 | |
City Harvest London
|
City Harvest London is a non profit organization that provides solution to surplus food and food poverty. | $409.3K / Grant / Jun 10, 2025 | |
CroBio
|
CroBio is a start-up founded by individuals specialising in microbiology and engineering. The company has a vision to create an environmentally sustainable solution to managing global agricultural drought.The companies current technology is based on a genetically engineered root-associated bacteria that has self-sustaining biologically activewater retention. The bacteria naturally occur around the roots of many crops such as corn, wheat and soybean. By exploiting these symbiotic relationships, we are able to engineer beneficial traits. | $831.7K / Grant / Feb 07, 2025 | |
Durham County Council
|
Durham County Council provides news about jobs, events, services, consultations & more. | $1.2M / Grant / Nov 14, 2024 | |
Fieldwork Robotics
|
Fieldwork Robotics is developing and commercializing soft, selective, and autonomous harvesting robots. It was established by Dr. Martin Stoelen of the University of Plymouth in 2016 at Cambridge, Cambridgeshire. | $758.2K / Grant / Mar 25, 2024 | |
|
Fieldwork Robotics
|
Fieldwork Robotics is developing and commercializing soft, selective, and autonomous harvesting robots. It was established by Dr. Martin Stoelen of the University of Plymouth in 2016 at Cambridge, Cambridgeshire. | $652.7K / Grant / Jan 03, 2024 | |
Upcycled Plant Power (UPP) Limited
|
80% of broccoli crop is wasted. upp™ harvests nutritious, health-promoting proteins and ingredients from the 80%.AI harvest automation* replaces hand-labour, delivering fresh broccoli and the 80% for uppcycling™.Clean, natural, healthy proteins and ingredients from what we already grow. Seriously sustainable, good for you, the farmer and ourplanet.*patent pending | $1M / Grant / Jun 15, 2023 | |
University of Plymouth
|
University of Plymouth is a world-leading modern, contemporary university and have fostered a dynamic and agile culture where great decisions are made at all levels each day. They have exceptional levels of student satisfaction, undertake world-class research with impact and their enterprising approach along with a commitment to raising aspirationsand innovation is making a real and sustainable difference to their students, staff, partners and society on a global stage. | Grant / May 24, 2023 |
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FAQ
What does Defra invest in?
Defra invests primarily in AgTech, Farming and Biotechnology startups, most often at Grant stage. Most of the 9 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United Kingdom. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.
How do I contact Defra?
Public channels for Defra include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.
Who are the partners at Defra?
The team at Defra includes Andrew Newman (Head of Data & Information Access), Chris Bowles (Senior Cloud Infrastructure Enginneer) and Colin Faulkner (Head of International Fisheries and Seafood Trade Policy). The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.
Is Shizune's investor data accurate?
Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.
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