Fresno agriculture tech company sparks Silicon Valley's interest

From the Fresno Bee:

A Fresno-based agriculture technology company is gaining valuable attention from the Silicon Valley after winning two recent awards for its software management system.

The start-up company — OnFarm Systems — was launched in April 2012 by Lance Donny, who saw an opportunity to combine multiple sources of field data into a user-friendly computer-based dashboard.

The idea is to make it easier for farmers to access information such as weather reports, irrigation water usage or pesticide application. The ultimate goal is to increase efficiency, reduce risk and save money.

And while the company is cultivating more customers, technology experts in the Silicon Valley have taken a keen interest in OnFarm.

The Fresno company was one of six winners at the annual "Launch: Silicon Valley 2013" a product launch event for start-ups. The company won a "Most Likely to Succeed" award in the technology category. Other categories included mobile, clean tech, and next generation Internet.

Judging for the event was done by venture capitalists and angel investors.

The company also collected accolades from Connected World Magazine during its annual gala in Santa Clara. The magazine named OnFarm a winner in its "Value Chain" awards in the agriculture category.

Donny said he was surprised by the recognition.

"It is nice to have people who make a business out of investing in technology look at your concept and like it," Donny said. "It reinforces what we are doing."

Technology experts say OnFarm represents a segment of the industry that is becoming vital as farmers face increasing regulations and multiple challenges to growing food.

"There is quite an upswing of interest in the ag and food industry," said Chris Gill, chief executive officer of SV Forum, a not-for-profit group serving the technology community. "With increases in population and the demand for food becoming greater, how we manage our resources of air, land and water will become critical."

David Zoldoske, director of the Center for Irrigation Technology, says OnFarm's honors are significant for two reasons: it provides farmers with a useful tool to manage operations, while also raising the Valley's profile as an emerging center of farm technology.

"We have entrepreneurs here who are coming up with some great ideas," Zoldoske said. "And they are helping to keep agriculture, our most important industry, productive."

One early adopter of the OnFarm technology is Robert Smith of West Hills Farms. Smith operates 8,500 acres of almonds and pistachios in the central San Joaquin Valley and Arizona.

Smith uses OnFarm's dashboard for better irrigation management and weather forecasting. In California, his ranches are spread out from Firebaugh to Lost Hills.

"Before we got OnFarm, I used to look at three different areas to get the information I needed," Smith said. "And now I just go to one spot. It is saving me time and making our operation more efficient."