.png)
Innovation isn't just about developing exciting new technologies - it's a powerful engine for economic development. When ag-tech companies take root in a region, they create ripple effects that benefit the entire community. This "multiplier effect" is transforming local economies, particularly in areas traditionally centered around agriculture.
The data tells a compelling story. Economist Enrico Moretti's research found that for each new high-tech job in a metropolitan area, about five additional local jobs are created outside the high-tech sector over time.[1] This multiplier is significantly higher than in many other industries, making innovation jobs uniquely valuable for community growth.
For ag-tech specifically, studies show that one job in this sector can lead to 4-6 additional jobs locally.[2] Consider what this means in practical terms: if an innovation center helps launch 50 successful ag-tech companies over a decade, employing 500 direct high-skilled workers, the multiplier effect could generate an additional 2,000+ jobs in the surrounding region - from farm technicians and manufacturing suppliers to marketing agencies and maintenance services.
This multiplier effect has several important implications:
The Plant Innovation Center is designed specifically to serve as an economic engine for Northern California's Sacramento Valley. By providing infrastructure for ag-tech startups and R&D, we keep companies (and jobs) local that might otherwise leave the state. California has seen numerous agricultural and biotech startups relocate elsewhere due to scale-up challenges - when they leave, they take their jobs and economic impact with them.
Our "lab-to-field" infrastructure solves this problem by giving companies room to grow within the region, retaining talent and economic value. Each startup that stays and succeeds can spawn dozens of indirect jobs, exactly the multiplier effect described above.
Additionally, The Plant will attract outside companies to establish a presence in our region. When major agrifood corporations partner with us on innovation initiatives, they often open satellite offices or fund local trials - injecting investment and creating more job opportunities.
The center is projected to support hundreds of jobs directly and indirectly in its first years. Importantly, these tend to be high-skilled, higher-wage positions that raise the average income in the area and have more spending power - further boosting local businesses from housing to hospitality.
We're also committed to ensuring these benefits are broadly shared. Through training partnerships with community colleges and workforce development programs, we're preparing regional residents for roles in laboratories and high-tech greenhouses, making sure economic gains benefit the entire community.
The evidence is clear: investing in innovation capacity produces outsized returns in jobs and regional prosperity. A dollar invested in an innovation hub isn't just creating a job in a laboratory - it's potentially creating five more across the community.[3] For policymakers, economic developers, and industry stakeholders, supporting initiatives like The Plant is a strategic way to catalyze vibrant economic growth with long-term benefits for the entire region.
[1] Brookings.edu, "Multiplier Effects: Connecting the Innovation and Opportunity Agendas." Research by economist Enrico Moretti demonstrated that for each new high-tech job in a metropolitan area, about five additional local jobs are created outside the high-tech sector in the long run.
[2] Based on business planning and economic impact analysis for The Plant Innovation Center.
[3] Brookings.edu, "Multiplier Effects: Connecting the Innovation and Opportunity Agendas." This study highlighted how innovation jobs have a uniquely large spillover effect compared to other sectors.
.svg)
.svg)
