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The Plant serves as a catalyst for innovation and commercialization in the agri-food-tech sector, helping startups, businesses, and researchers turn groundbreaking ideas into real-world solutions by providing critical resources, infrastructure, and expertise.
California leads in both agricultural production and biotechnology research, yet many promising innovations stall before reaching the market. Startups and researchers lack access to scale-up facilities and expertise, forcing many to relocate out of state or abandon their ventures entirely.
The Plant bridges this critical "valley of death" by providing an integrated innovation pipeline that helps entrepreneurs advance their technologies from lab validation (TRL 4) to market-ready products (TRL 8) — all in one location.
The Plant will offer approximately 140,000 square feet of state-of-the-art facilities on a 10-acre campus in California's Sacramento Valley. Our integrated approach eliminates fragmentation and saves valuable time and money for innovators.
Modern greenhouses and indoor farming modules for year-round crop research, testing, and demonstration
Experimental kitchen and sensory lab for recipe formulation, food product development, and consumer testing
Pilot-scale fermentation and processing equipment (up to 20,000L capacity) for scaling up biological products
Private offices, co-working areas, and collaborative spaces supported by mentorship and business development programs
Wet labs and analytical facilities (biosafety level-2) for biotechnology, microbiology, chemistry, and food science research
Dedicated spaces for workshops, industry networking, demonstration days, and community engagement
The Plant brings together academia, industry, and government in a powerful "triple helix" model that accelerates innovation. By co-locating researchers, entrepreneurs, corporate teams, and policy makers, we create an ecosystem where ideas, expertise, and resources flow freely
Led by University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR), connecting researchers, extension specialists, and students
Partnerships with companies like NatureSweet (controlled-environment agriculture), and AgStart (agtech incubation)
Support from local cities, regional agencies like Valley Vision, state funding initiatives, and federal programs
Creating high-skilled jobs in agriculture and biotechnology
Retaining talent and intellectual property in California
Attracting investment and corporate R&D to the region
Strengthening local supply chains and value-added production
Accelerating development of climate-smart agriculture practices
Scaling up production of bio-based alternatives to petrochemicals
Advancing sustainable food technologies including alternative proteins
Improving water efficiency in farming through CEA technologies
Engaging historically underrepresented groups including BIPOC farmers and entrepreneurs
Creating career pathways through workforce training and skill development
Revitalizing rural communities through technology adoption
Connecting Silicon Valley tech innovation with Central Valley agricultural expertise
Catalyst Grant will jump-start development of The Plant, a first-of-its-kind innovation campus accelerating sustainable solutions in agriculture, food, and climate.
UC ANR Innovate’s new campus will turn research into impact, bridging academia, startups, and industry to boost food security and regional resilience..
The Plant is a collaborative initiative designed to support the development and scale-up of practical solutions in agriculture, food, and biotechnology. We're currently engaging with investors, companies, researchers, public agencies, and community organizations interested in contributing to this work.
Penny McBride
Partnership Lead
The Plant | UCANR Innovate
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penny@ucanrinnovate.io
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