The Future of Agriculture Is Biological

The Future of Agriculture Is Biological

Apr 7, 2026

How Greater Sacramento Is Building the Ecosystem to Lead a $35 Billion Revolution

Synthetic fertilizers transformed global agriculture in the early 20th century, catalyzed by the Haber-Bosch process and the expansion of international fertilizer trade. Regions like California’s San Joaquin Valley became agricultural powerhouses. But that chemical revolution carried a steep cost: soil degradation, water contamination, pollinator decline, and growing pest resistance. Now, a new revolution is underway—and the Greater Sacramento region is at its epicenter.

Agricultural biologicals—products derived from living organisms and natural materials—are rapidly replacing synthetic chemicals as the future of crop protection and soil health. And the organizations, entrepreneurs, and investors driving this transformation are building their base right here in Northern California, with AgStart leading the charge to turn scientific breakthroughs into commercial realities.

A Market Poised for Explosive Growth

The numbers tell a compelling story for entrepreneurs and investors alike. The global agricultural biologicals market is valued at approximately $17–18 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $35–44 billion by 2030–32, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12–14% (Fortune Business Insights; MarketsandMarkets, 2025). In the United States alone, the agricultural biologicals market is estimated at $3.55 billion in 2025 and is expected to nearly double to $6.48 billion by 2030, reflecting a 12.8% CAGR (Mordor Intelligence, 2025).

The biopesticides segment specifically is projected to grow from $8.94 billion in 2025 to $17.68 billion by 2030 at a 14.6% CAGR (MarketsandMarkets, 2025). For context, the broader crop protection chemicals market grows at roughly 5% annually—meaning biologicals are expanding nearly three times faster than their synthetic counterparts.

What’s driving this surge? A convergence of forces: pests developing resistance to chemical agents, tightening regulations worldwide, consumer demand for residue-free food, and the integration of biologicals into precision agriculture and integrated pest management (IPM) strategies.

Global Momentum: From Brazil to the EU to California

Brazil currently leads the world in biological adoption. According to the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA), 55% of the country’s cultivated land uses some form of biological input, and adoption has grown at roughly 22% annually in recent years—four times the global average (AgriBrasilis, 2025). More than 60% of Brazilian farmers now use biologicals, and the potential area treated with bio-inputs reached 156 million hectares in the 2024–25 growing season (CropLife Brasil, 2025).

In Europe, the Farm to Fork Strategy—a centerpiece of the European Green Deal—set ambitious targets to reduce overall chemical pesticide use and risk by 50% by 2030 (European Commission, 2020). While the legislative path has encountered political headwinds, the directional signal is clear: the regulatory environment is tilting decisively toward biological alternatives. The European agricultural biologicals market is anticipated to reach approximately $5 billion in 2025 (Fortune Business Insights, 2025).

In the United States, adoption still lags at around 10% of farmers compared to Brazil’s 60%+ (AgFunder News, 2025). That gap represents an enormous opportunity. The EPA has been streamlining biopesticide registration processes, and the U.S. market’s projected near-doubling over five years signals that American agriculture is approaching an inflection point—one that entrepreneurs and investors in the Greater Sacramento region are uniquely positioned to capitalize on.

Greater Sacramento: An Innovation Cluster with Proven Results

The Greater Sacramento region has emerged as one of the nation’s most dynamic innovation clusters for agricultural biologicals, and its success is no accident. It is the product of world-class research institutions, a proven track record of commercial successes, and a deliberate ecosystem-building strategy.

The story begins with AgraQuest, an early pioneer in biopesticides headquartered in the region. AgraQuest’s success—culminating in its acquisition by Bayer CropScience for over $400 million—put Greater Sacramento on the global biologicals map and established Bayer’s global biologicals headquarters in West Sacramento.

What followed was a virtuous cycle of innovation. Alumni of AgraQuest went on to found Marrone Bio Innovations (subsequently acquired by Bioceres), BioConsortia, and Invasive Species Corporation. Additional innovators including Botanical Solution Inc. and Pheronym have further deepened the region’s bench strength. Together, these companies represent a concentration of biological expertise that rivals any cluster in the world.

The region’s advantages extend well beyond any single company. UC Davis—ranked the #1 agricultural sciences university in the United States—is just 15 miles from downtown Sacramento, providing a continuous pipeline of top-tier scientific talent. Major global players including Bayer Crop Science, BASF, Novonesis, and Syngenta all maintain research and development operations in the region. California’s Central Valley, the world’s largest patch of Class 1 soil, provides immediate access to millions of acres of farmland for field trials across diverse crop types.

AgStart: The Engine of Commercialization

At the center of this ecosystem sits AgStart, a regional non-profit incubator that has become a nationally recognized leader in helping biological startups navigate the critical journey from laboratory discovery to commercial product.

Founded in 2012 through a partnership between regional economic development leaders and UC Davis, AgStart has supported hundreds of AgriFood startups through its unique combination of shared infrastructure, expert mentorship, and deep ecosystem connections.

The Lab@AgStart, located in downtown Woodland, California, is the only integrated wet lab and food lab in Northern California. The nearly 13,000-square-foot facility features 52 lab benches, a fully equipped bio-fermentation lab where scientists can rapidly grow specific microbes and produce biological materials for trials, as well as coworking space and a certified commercial food lab. When it opened, the Lab@AgStart doubled the region’s wet lab capacity—and demand immediately outstripped supply, with half the benches reserved before the doors even opened.

For entrepreneurs, AgStart dramatically lowers the barriers to entry. Rather than raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for lab equipment and facility build-out before producing a single sample, startups can access shared, world-class infrastructure from day one. AgStart also offers programs that fund expert guidance at no cost to entrepreneurs, facilitate strategic partnerships, and connect companies into supportive regional and national networks including Agtech Nation and Harvest Agtech, which can enable free or low-cost field trials across different crop types.

AgStart’s partnership with Bayer’s LifeHub California further underscores its standing. Through the Golden Ticket competition, AgStart and Bayer provide startups from around the world with a year of fully-paid lab access, mentorship from Bayer’s global experts, and immersion in the Greater Sacramento innovation ecosystem—an offer that attracts applicants from pre-seed through Series A stages worldwide.

Why This Matters for Entrepreneurs and Investors

The convergence of market demand, regulatory tailwinds, and regional infrastructure creates a rare alignment of opportunity:

For entrepreneurs: The biologicals market is growing at double-digit rates with massive unmet demand. The U.S. is years behind Brazil in adoption, meaning the domestic market runway is long. AgStart provides the lab infrastructure, mentorship, partnerships, and ecosystem connections that can take a promising organism from bench-scale to field trial without requiring the capital expenditure that typically stalls early-stage biological companies. UC Davis’s talent pipeline and the region’s concentration of industry expertise mean you’re building your company in the best possible environment.

For investors: Agricultural biologicals represent a category with strong secular growth fundamentals—regulatory pressure on chemicals is tightening globally, pest resistance is increasing, and consumer preferences are shifting toward sustainability. The Greater Sacramento cluster offers a deal flow of science-backed startups with access to field-trial infrastructure and proximity to one of the world’s most productive agricultural regions. VC investment in agricultural biological startups in Latin America alone grew more than 2,000% between 2020 and 2024 (AgFunder News, 2025), signaling the depth of investor conviction in this space.

Join the Biological Revolution

Agriculture is at the threshold of its next great transformation. The shift from synthetic chemicals to biological solutions is not a question of if, but how fast. The Greater Sacramento region—with its unmatched combination of research talent, commercial track record, agricultural proximity, and innovation infrastructure—is where this future is being built.

AgStart invites startups working in agriculture, food, and biotechnology to connect and explore the programs, facilities, and support services available for their growth and commercialization goals. Whether you’re a scientist with a promising microbe, an entrepreneur ready to scale, or an investor looking for the next breakthrough in sustainable agriculture, Greater Sacramento is where you need to be.

Sources & Market Data

  • Fortune Business Insights. “Agricultural Biologicals Market Size, Share, Growth Report [2032].” Global market projected at $17.16B (2025) to $43.58B (2032), 14.24% CAGR.
  • MarketsandMarkets. “Agricultural Biologicals Market Size, Share, Growth and Forecast.” Market projected at $18.44B (2025) to $34.99B (2030), 13.7% CAGR.
  • MarketsandMarkets. “Rising Demand for Sustainable Crop Protection Driving Biopesticides Market Growth.” Biopesticides market at $8.94B (2025) to $17.68B (2030), 14.6% CAGR.
  • Mordor Intelligence. “United States Agricultural Biologicals Market Forecasts to 2030.” U.S. market at $3.55B (2025) to $6.48B (2030), 12.8% CAGR.
  • EMBRAPA / AgriBrasilis. 55% of Brazil’s cultivated land uses biological inputs; average adoption growth of 22% annually.
  • CropLife Brasil (2025). Potential area treated with bio-inputs reached 156 million hectares in 2024–25 season.
  • AgFunder News (2025). U.S. biologicals adoption at ~10% vs. Brazil’s 60%+. VC investment in LatAm biologicals grew 2,000%+ from 2020–2024.
  • European Commission. Farm to Fork Strategy (2020): targets 50% reduction in chemical pesticide use/risk by 2030.
  • AgStart (agstart.org), Greater Sacramento Economic Council, U.S. Economic Development Administration, Valley Vision.

Enjoyed this article? Discover more cleantech innovation and startup resources on our blog page.

Christina Granados

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sudhee Lakshama serves as AgStart’s Lab Director, working directly with our client companies to support their work, overseeing our lab facilities, and managing our community-building and client-support programs including our monthly ‘Learn From A Local’ networking events and our AgriFoodTech Entrepreneur Resource (AFTER) mentoring support program.

Sudhee brings a background of work in academic labs and his own start-up. Sudhee’s background includes a stint at UC Davis as a postdoc in 2009, working on nano-photonics. In that period, he discovered his entrepreneurial DNA and co-founded Sonanutech Inc with Prof. Ian Kennedy, raising over $1.3 million in grant and $100,000 in industrial support for the rapid bacteriophage test. Since 2019, he has been working as an instructor and program director at Carrington College. Sudhee brings to these roles a passion for science, technology and instrumentation, along with the experience of building and managing a biotech lab. He has served as a principle investigator and as a reviewer for National Institute of Health and National Science Foundation grants. He is the recipient of the prestigious Alexander-von-Humboldt fellowship. Sudhee holds a PhD in Materials Chemistry from India.

Creating a Startup? Why You Should Attend the CleanStart Customer Discovery Workshop

Creating a Startup? Why You Should Attend the CleanStart Customer Discovery Workshop

Jan 20, 2020

What is the most important factor in successfully pitching for investment?  Having some proof you have customers interested in your product. Most startups skip over this step and go to investors unprepared.  Why is this a bad idea? Here are some radical thoughts that will be discussed in our workshop:

  1. Most investor firms want startups to focus quickly on a product launch date and scale up.  This is deadly advice. Ignore it. It leads to early bankruptcy if the startup has not discovered who their customers are and what they want.

     

  2. There’s only one reason for a business plan:  Some investor who went to business school doesn’t know any better and wants to see one.  Startups get focused on doing a business plan too soon. Once the business plan is delivered it is fundamentally useless at best and dangerous at worst.

     

  3. A startup is not a small version of a big company.  What works for product development at a big company will not work in a small company.

     

  4. Unlike existing companies, startups go from failure to failure.  That’s not bad if (1) one learns from failure, and (2) the failures are not expensive.  The only way for a startup to find a good path is try lots of experiments and take a lot of wrong turns.  Failure is a part of the process. The key is not to waste a lot of time and cash on the experiments. They have to be done on the cheap and done fast.

     

  5. A startup is a faith-based enterprise built on its founder’s vision and a notable absence of facts.  The founder’s job is to translate this vision and assumptions into facts. Founders can’t do this by huddling at their desks.  They have to get out of the building and go see customers.

     

  6. Market research firms are great at predicting the past and coloring their conclusions to fit what they think clients want to hear.  They are no substitute for a founder’s getting out and testing ideas with actual customers in person.

Customer Discovery and Product-Market Fit Workshop

Where:

Hacker Lab

When:

9:30 AM January 28th

and

6:00 PM February 4th

Register Now!

Intrigued?  Then sign up for the workshop either January 28 from 6-8:30 pm or February 4 from 9:30 to noon at Hacker Lab (2533 R Street).  A $20 donation is requested, but don’t let that be a barrier. If you are serious about creating a startup, you need to come regardless.  

Thomas Hall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary Simon is the Chair of CleanStarts Board. A seasoned energy executive and entrepreneur with 45 years of experience in business, government, and non-profits.

CleanStart Sponsors

Weintraub | Tobin, EY, Stoel Rives, Greenberg Traurig LLP

BlueTech Valley, Buchalter, Moss Adams, PowerSoft.biz

College of Engineering & Computer Science at Sacramento State

EPIC Symposium Highlights Directions for Future Contract Funding from CEC

EPIC Symposium Highlights Directions for Future Contract Funding from CEC

Feb 22, 2019

On Tuesday Feb. 19, the California Energy Commission held its annual showcase for the technologies and studies it has funded under its Electric Program Investment Charge (EPIC).  EPIC raises about $160 million in funding each year and the CEC uses it to fund early startups (CalSEED), emerging technologies and creative solutions, as well as fostering energy entrepreneurs through business accelerator programs, the most well-known of which is the CleanTech Open – West.  The Symposium featured 15 panel sessions with 60 or so speakers and 35 exhibits from teams funded by EPIC.

Because many of the sessions were running concurrently, we couldn’t get to all of them, but here are some of the most interesting ideas we heard that may drive future EPIC funding solicitations and create business opportunities for you.

  • Broadening storage technologies beyond lithium ion batteries.  The recurrence of fires at large-scale lithium ion battery installations is raising concerns whether these are safe enough.  This concern is driving a look into other solutions–vanadium flow batteries, zinc-water batteries, high temp sulfur batteries, concentrated solar thermal integrated with thermal storage.  But there are more options that were not discussed–kinetic energy storage systems (flywheels), other battery chemistries–that keep the door open for more creativity in this area. One speaker offered the view that we may be just at the edge of a big price drop in storage technology driven by technology maturity and volume production, similar to what happened in solar PV, which may result in a lot more interest in storage of all types.

     

  • Non-battery solutions for matching renewables to demand.  The traditional approach to this problem has been to match supply to a variable demand, and emphasizes storage.  But what if one could turn this on its head and match demand to a variable supply through sophisticated demand management.  One speaker put it this way: “The smarter the grid, the less storage required”. Adding millions of points of control and a very smart management apps might do this.  But how much control would users be willing to surrender? How invisible could someone make it? Is there a way to simplify this approach?

     

  • Getting more from managing the charging of electric vehicles.  There must be at least three dozen entrepreneurs chasing this idea nationwide, most of which seem to be in California.  It could have larger implications for controlling load to avoid the need for storage, as noted above. How much infrastructure could be avoided if charging were better managed?   As the number of electric vehicles become dominant in California, how can complications of congestion at popular charging locations be dealt with? How can we move consumers from the mindset of “filling a tank” for a week of driving to just charging for what they immediately need? Can smaller cheaper level 2 chargers meet demand?   While there are many teams chasing this problem, there still seems room for more.

     

  • Making the energy revolution benefit underserved communities.  This topic has been receiving growing attention over the last two decades. . It seems to be as much about mobilizing underserved communities as it is about new technology. When asked projects and grant recipients acknowledged they struggled to connect with underserved groups. Promoting equitable growth was stressed in most if not all talks.  If you are looking for a demo project, the CEC is launching a tool to help you find an underserved community in which to put it and put some money behind it. They are also soliciting feedback from groups. Do you have a demo that can benefit community groups or are you a community group that has a clean tech need?
  • All of the solutions have a similar issue with adoption is they require behavior change. While we are used to energy on demand, it is not the most efficient or cost effective model. Incorporating AI that engages consumers to accommodate for future demand was identified as important for Electric Vehicle charging and Vehicle to Grid incorporation, grid management of all sizes, storage use, and building efficiency. How do we accelerate adoption faster and overcome human behavior? Do we use a stick and carrot approach, hand over energy control to AI,  or something else?

     

The CEC will be issuing new solicitations from the EPIC funding and other money it receives to advance clean fuels and alternative transportation.  If you want to get timely alerts, be sure to add your name to their notification list.

Thomas Hall

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Gary Simon is the Chair of CleanStarts Board. A seasoned energy executive and entrepreneur with 45 years of experience in business, government, and non-profits.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Thomas is the Executive Director of CleanStart. Thomas has a strong background in supporting small businesses, leadership, financial management and is proficient in working with nonprofits. He has a BS in Finance and a BA in Economics from California State University, Chico. Thomas has a passion for sustainability and a commitment to supporting non-profits in the region.