Big Money in Indoor Farming: "Billionaire Olayan family backs UAE’s Pure Harvest in $181m fundraiser"

From AgFunderNews, June 30:

• Pure Harvest Smart Farms, a UAE controlled environment ag (CEA) company, has raised $180.5 million in its latest funding round.
• The convertible note financing was led by the billionaire Olayan family, which runs one of Saudi Arabia’s largest conglomerates, the Olayan Group.
• Also participating in the round were the UK’s Metric Capital Partners and South Korea’s IMM Investment.
• The funding will go into expansion in the Middle East as well as entering new markets in Asia such as South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
• Pure Harvest had raised $64.5 million last year in a round led by IMM. Today’s capital injection brings the total amount raised by the startup to $387 million.

Why it matters:
Gulf countries are predisposed to harsh climatic conditions, limited water supply, and a lack of cultivable land. This means they must source the vast majority of fresh produce overseas. The UAE imports almost 90% of its food, costing it an estimated $14 billion in 2020....

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