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AgHelp, a startup focused on addressing the acute labor shortage in the agricultural industry, has gained a lot of traction over the past year by taking an innovative approach to help solve this problem. The founding team, two generations deep, took their life experiences as former farmworkers and the insight they gained in their professional careers to develop this company. AgHelp is a marketplace where ag employers can post jobs to connect with agricultural labor and, in turn, connect this workforce with support services like education, training, health services and much more. AgHelp is set to become the “Monster Jobs” for ag jobs and resources nationally!
 Over the past year, AgHelp has gained local and national attention at various events and pitch competitions:
- Named the Grand Rapids Business Journal’s Newsmaker of the year in the startups category
- Won the Northern Michigan Greenlight Pitch Competition
- Received $7.5K for placing 3rd in the GreenLight Business Model Competition
- Received first place in StartGarden’s 5x5 Night pitch competition for $5K dollars
- Selected as one of five startups to receive a $40K investment in Iowa AgriTech Accelerator’s program for 2018
- Selected as one of six startups to showcase AgHelp at the Farmers Business Network national convention to over two thousand attendees
Most recently, they were selected by the American Farm Bureau Federation as one of four startups nationally to pitch for the Ag Innovation Challenge this month. The top four were granted $15,000 and were given a chance to win an additional $15,000 at the annual convention that was held in Louisiana this month.
With the assistance of Jason Pliml and the team at the Small Business Development Center (SBDC), supported by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), AgHelp has been able to navigate the complexities of bringing a new business innovation to the market. Whether it’s a quick call to ask advice, assistance with setting up financials or taking a deep dive into a due diligence request, AgHelp has been able to provide that support.
AgHelp has also been working with the folks at the Muskegon Innovation Hub, a SmartZone supported by the MEDC, to access the Business Accelerator Fund to help with marketing, along with the Grand Rapids Start Garden, “who have always opened their doors to provide space to meet with new clients and provided leads and offer informative workshops for us to take advantage of throughout the year,” said founding team member Feliciano Paredes.
“Since the launch of our website in December of 2018, AgHelp has received over 150 worker signups per week, support agencies claiming profiles and employers ready to sign up across the country! We anticipate rapid growth as we scale nationally and plan to continue working closely with our Michigan-based partners for strategic planning services and new opportunities for additional funding. In this rapidly changing and fast paced industry, we know the Michigan SBDC and other local SmartZone Services providers will be there steady and ready to assist us.”- Feliciano Paredes
Click here to read more about AgHelp in Crain's Detroit Business
For more company information, please see www.aghelpusa.com.
 Michigan's $101 billion food and agriculture industry is a critical part of the state's economy, with farm and food-related jobs accounting for more than 20 percent of our workforce. In March we say "Thank you!" to Michigan farmers and the thousands of Michiganders who support the nation's second-most diverse agricultural economy.
As we celebrate Michigan Food & Agriculture Month, Denise Graves, University Relations Director at the MEDC, writes about the opportunities for ag-focused entrepreneurs at the Michigan Translational Research and Commercialization (MTRAC) Innovation Hub for AgBio at Michigan State University.
Read the full article here.
Kalamazoo ag startup Native Traits Corp. has developed a novel technology that aims to fundamentally alter hybrid corn development. Using a proprietary algorithm that identifies desirable traits that occur naturally, Native Traits was able to develop and is now marketing a naturally occurring (non-GMO) trait known as EaSYTM (Enhanced Seed Yield).
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Native Traits Corporation continues to make strides securing contractual agreements with three seed corn developers to add EaSY to their genetic lines and collaborating with a major multi-national company is also underway. The company has received financial support from several Michigan investors and hybrid seed companies, as well as financial backing from the Biosciences Research & Commercialization Center (BRCC) at Western Michigan University and Invest Michigan, both of which are supported by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).
 Highlights contributing to the company’s success are as follows:
- The company placed first and second in elevator pitch competitions held in Michigan and in Wisconsin, respectively
- The initial investment in Native Traits was led by the BRCC and allowed the company to generate additional test data, secure its intellectual property with patent positions and identify genetic biomarkers for the EaSY trait
- A Series A Preferred Stock round of financing was completed in March of 2016. Participants included a regional seed corn company, Northern Michigan Angels and several other investors
- A round of convertible note financing was completed in June of 2018. Two regional seed companies participated along with the BRCC and several angel investors
- Extensive field testing of the EaSY trait demonstrated double-digit improvements in the yield of hybrid varieties in 2017 and 2018
- A Material Transfer Agreement was signed with a major multi-national company in the fall of 2018, thereby positioning the company for large-scale tests of pre-commercial hybrids in 2019
- The company has signed a confidentiality agreement with a consortium of hybrid seed companies. Further collaborative projects are anticipated
- A second round of convertible note financing is underway as a prelude to a deal with a major strategic partner
According to its company president, Dr. James Friedrich, “Native Traits has the potential to change the competitive landscape of the seed corn industry—an achievement that would not have been possible without the support of the MEDC and its partnering organizations, including the BRCC, Invest Michigan and others.”
For more information, please visit the company’s website at www.nativetraits.net
Entrepreneurs from two successful Michigan high-tech start-ups, Vesteron Corp. and Armune BioScience Inc. joined forces to commercialize a novel device to heal diabetes-related foot ulcers.
Eli Thomssen and Nancy Newman have joined the team at Kalamazoo based Adlore Inc. to develop a device incorporating technology to improve diabetic foot ulcer healing rates. The device is based on research from the lab of Dr. Daryl Lawson (Western Michigan University), who studied under Nobel Prize contender Dr. Jerrold Petrofsky, who adapted a portable computer system designed to stimulate the leg muscles of paralysis victims.
This groundbreaking research was the foundation of the movie First Steps. Daryl studied under Dr. Petrofsky and focused his work on how electrical stimulation and heat could improve wound healing rates, and this work became his dissertation that was published in a peer reviewed journal. Daryl collaborated with Dr. Chris Arena (Virginia Tech), a biomedical engineer, to develop a rudimentary device. They then conducted a small scale clinical trial and demonstrated clinical success. Dr. Daryl Lawson and Dr. Chris Arena are members of the management team and founders of the company.
This is further evidence of cross-pollination and increased serial entrepreneurship in a maturing Michigan high-tech start-up community.
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Traverse City-based business incubator 20Fathoms is graduating its first two successful startups after just 8 months of operations. SampleServe (which offers a streamlined approach to creating environmental reports) and Atlas Space Operations (based on a novel approach to satellite communications) have both successfully completed at least one funding round and are now hiring rapidly to support growth.
 20Fathoms is based on state of the art communications technology with custom-designed workspace for Northern Michigan start-ups and aims to make Traverse City a hub for tech business, attracting companies and talent from across the U.S. The venture is supported by nearly 70 sponsors and donors, almost entirely from the local community.
Headed by Andy Cole, himself a Traverse City native who was attracted back to the city from Boston, the incubator now hosts 50 members representing 22 startups and has enjoyed multiple success stories, including the launch of a distance medical monitoring research platform from Spire Health, a prototype remote operated vehicle (ROV) drone for long-range underwater exploration from Hybrid Robotics inc., and a successful Series A raise to expand the global network of satellite antennas for Atlas Space Operations.
First Capital Fund - An early seed investment fund serving emerging and newly-formed technology companies |
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Pre Seed II Fund - An early-stage investor that invests in high-growth technology start-ups |
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 Visit us here or contact LeTasha Peebles (peeblesl@michigan.org) or Maggie McCammon (mccammonm@michigan.org).
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