Tathmeer launches agri

The crowdfunding platform has announced the launch of the MENA region’s first Integrated Agri-Tech Innovation Centre to boost food security and sustainable farming in the UAE

The launch of Tathmeer Agri Tech Centre

Crowdfunding platform Tathmeer Agri Tech has launched MENA’s first Integrated Agri-Tech Innovation Centre in partnership with Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park (SPARK) in Sharjah, UAE.

The centre is set to create a real-world environment for agricultural technologies to be demonstrated, tested and validated before being deployed commercially.

Alongside Tathmeer’s FarmBridge digital platform, the centre will also bring together controlled-environment agriculture, hydroponics, vertical farming, automation, IoT and AI-enabled monitoring, as well as supporting applied R&D pilots, farmer training, technology selection, startup development and connections between agricultural producers, technology providers, investors and markets.

Tathmeer Agri Tech has also partnered with Elevate Farms, a vertical farming technology company operating in Canada, the US and Switzerland to ensure better access to advanced vertical farming technologies and to support their demonstration, validation and potential deployment in the UAE and the wider region.

The initiative is part of the UAE’s effort to put food security and sustainable agriculture among its strategic priorities, with advanced technologies playing a growing role in the face of water scarcity, limited arable land and extreme climatic conditions.

Hussain Al Mahmoudi of SPARK and Layth Dwairi of Tathmeer

Hussain Al Mahmoudi, chief executive officer of the Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park (SPARK), commented: “SPARK’s mandate is to transform research, technology and innovation into practical economic value. This collaboration with Tathmeer Agri Tech reflects the type of investment we want to attract to Sharjah: companies that combine technology, applied R&D, physical infrastructure and market access to address strategic priorities such as food security, sustainability and economic diversification.”

Layth Dwairi, CEO and co-founder of Tathmeer Agri Tech, said: “Growers across this region are short of a way to test technology before committing capital to it. That is what this centre changes. Working with SPARK, we can put controlled-environment systems, vertical farming and AI-enabled monitoring in front of farmers under real operating conditions, then connect what proves itself to financing through our SCA-approved platform and to buyers through FarmBridge. Our partnership with Elevate Farms brings internationally proven vertical farming technology into that environment. Success is reflected in farms being able to produce more with less water, and a clear route to market.”