St. Pete startup’s tech supports regenerative farming

Amazon released its star-studded regenerative farming documentary, Common Ground, on Earth Day to highlight how the practice stabilizes the climate, restores ecosystems and significantly increases food production. 

A St. Petersburg-based startup has developed a predictive analytics platform that supports regenerative farming. Sarah Martello, co-founder and CEO of Agwise, explained how her software can bolster efficiency, profitability and environmental resilience Wednesday at the Maritime and Defense Technology Hub’s monthly, public Tech X-Change event. 

The overarching goal is to help farmers improve soil health while minimizing costs. Decreasing reliance on fertilizers and pesticides also mitigates harmful nutrient run-off and could reduce soaring cancer rates in America’s heartland. 

“This is the big picture – 65% of nutrients don’t get absorbed into anything,” Martello said. “And fertilizer costs keep going up. There are a couple of major fertilizer companies that are in the business of making sure you buy the same amount of fertilizer every year, and they have incentive programs around it.” 

Martello, an attorney, owned tax law and consultancy firms before she and her husband entered the agricultural technology space. The two launched AgWise in March 2022 and recently moved their office from downtown St. Petersburg to the ARK Innovation Center. 

Agriculture is in Martello’s blood. She grew up on a farm in Kansas and said that “is the only thing my whole family has ever done.” 

“I can’t even convince them to cut down on nutrients because they’re doing what their father did, what their grandfather did,” Martello said. “That’s their insurance policy, and it’s ok if they spend more money. 

“But it’s killing the soil and polluting our environment.” 

A comparison of a traditional farm (right) with depleted soil that leads to harmful nutrient runoff and one that benefits from regenerative practices. Photo: Regenerative Farmers of America.

Conventional farmers continuously till and plow their soil, destroying beneficial microbes and releasing carbon into the atmosphere. Repeatedly growing a single crop also depletes advantageous nutrients and often leads to pest and disease outbreaks.

Ranchers and farmers then turn to fertilizers, which the soil cannot absorb. They also use pesticides to eliminate bugs. 

“Look at what’s happening in Nebraska – because of the nitrates going into the soil, they have record pediatric cancer rates,” Martello said. “We met with the governor a couple of times. All I can say is that it doesn’t seem like a priority.” 

Martello, an early Bitcoin adopter and blockchain aficionado, has mostly bootstrapped AgWise. She and her husband have raised about $300,000 and would consider strategic partnerships that align with their mission. 

Farms and ranches in 23 states now utilize their software-as-a-service platform. However, disrupting the agricultural industry has proven difficult, and the local startup has yet to secure a client in Florida. 

The AgWise process starts with holistic soil tests. The data intelligence platform then offers precision recommendations throughout the planting and production process. “They know exactly how much (nutrients) to apply throughout the season, and there’s a feedback loop to all of this,” Martello said. 

The AgWise platform also offers tools for farmers and ranchers to track their regenerative progress. Those practices include minimizing soil disturbances and covering the ground with organic matter to eliminate erosion from water and wind.

Regenerative farmers maintain living roots to support organisms, increase plant diversity to break pest cycles and offer food for pollinators, integrate livestock that provide natural fertilizer and reduce or eliminate pesticide applications through beneficial insects and healthy soil. “It’s healing,” Martello said. 

“The platforms that are out there, they’re owned by Big Ag (conglomerates),” she added. “They’re pushing their own products.”