Impax launched its food and agriculture fund, a Dublin-domiciled OEIC, on December 1st 2012. The fund is run by Michael Landymore and Simon Higgo. Michael attended our December 2012 LEIF round table on ‘Resource Efficiency in Agriculture and Food.’ This interview was conducted in December 2012.

This interview with Mark Kahn (Venture Partner at Omnivore Capital) was conducted in January 2013 for a LEIF article ‘Software feeds the world (as it eats it)’

This interview with Steven Falci (Head of Strategy Development - Sustainable Investment, Kleinwort Benson Investors) on the KBI Agribusiness strategy was conducted in November 2012 ahead of our December 3rd roundtable on Resource Efficiency in Agriculture and Food.

Tom Whitehouse, LEIF Chairman and Carbon International CEO

Investors are seeking (and finding) software-enabled agricultural and food innovation that lower costs, increase yields and reduce resource intensity  

Disclosure: Carbon International, a London-based investment consultancy, runs the London Environmental Investment Forum (LEIF). None of the companies mentioned in the following article are current clients.  

If you were feeling only slightly contrary, you could argue that agriculture and food are actually extensions of the water industry. (The same could be said equally plausibly of oil and gas, particularly the unconventional stuff – see LEIF Brief, Water Innovation in Extractive Industries).

Agriculture could be a cleantech gold mine; a massive high growth industry where energy and water are used intensively, which produces plenty of waste (much of which contains valuable stuff to recover), and which needs to increase yields at the same time as it controls costs. 

The amount of water used in extractive industries (oil, gas and mining) is increasing dramatically, but water itself is a supply-constrained resource. Herein lies an environmental problem and an investment opportunity.

Our second LEIF conference for 2012 will focus on ‘Water Innovation in Extractive Industries’.  In the lead up to this (free) event, which will take place on May 25 at Norton Rose in London, we’ll be blogging  in more detail on this emerging cleantech investment theme - looking at some of the leading and emerging players, recent deal activity and the investment opportunities that are presenting themselves.

This is the final part of a three part blog exploring the emerging environmental investmenrt themes of remanufacturing and recommerce.  Read Part 1 and Part 2.

This is the second part of a three part blog exploring the emerging environmental investmenrt themes of remanufacturing and recommerce.  Read Part 1 here.

This is the first part of a three part blog series exploring the emerging environmental investment themes of remanufacturing and recommerce and the opportunities within them.

Fixing things, cleaning them up and selling them to someone else. Nothing ‘new’ there?  Well, no - and yes.  Remanufacturing and reuse might not be a new frontier or at the forefront of technological advancement, but at a time of economic instability that’s part of the appeal.And there is innovation to be uncovered...

Recommerce is a term to describe the trading of used goods.  The industry is flourishing as cash-strapped consumers and businesses look to make money from items they no longer want and to spend less on the things they do. This high growth sector is producing interesting business models which are going some steps further than the likes of eBay by offering buyers quality-checked used products, which come with warranties and peace of mind.  For sellers, it’s a quicker and simpler way to raise cash than via eBay-style auctions.

Some sectors and businesses have been more resilient than others to the economic crisis.  But has the recession actually been a driver of growth for any?  Apparently so - and they’re fast gaining investor attention, emerging as the ultimate recession-busting cleantech investment.

This is the second part of my blog on produced water (you can read the first part here) which will look at the market – the players and technologies – in some more detail.

In our last post we gave a brief introduction to the emerging cleantech investment theme of water treatment and management in extractive industries. The topic will be the focus of our upcoming (free) conference on May 25 in London. The next couple of blogs will look at one half of this theme - 'produced' water (from the oil and gas industry)...

The US is way ahead of Europe on demand response.  So much so that while the two big US demand response companies, EnerNOC and Comverge, are being forced to look elsewhere for business as their home market nears saturation point, here in Europe, demand response is only just beginning to get off the ground.

This is the third and final part of my blog on critical metals and cleantech.  This one aims to give an overview of where the opportunities are presenting themselves and those that are leading and innovating in the sector today.  

In the first part of this blog I looked at the metals currently considered critical among sector analysts, and those that UK consultancy Oakdene Hollins has identified as likely to remain or become critical in the next five to 10 years.

Is China and its rare earth supply restrictions actually doing cleantech a favour?

Our ‘Investing in Energy Efficiency’ conference went very well on Friday. We had a good mix of corporates, investors and innovators - both speaking and in the audience.  Thanks to all those who spoke, supported and participated.