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But with that said, what we have at AppHarvest is fairly unique. I cant say this was the exact plan but what accelerated all of this was Covid-19, AppHarvest CEO Jonathan Webb told AFN. We've been able, very fortunate, a very talented team, MIT team out of Boston that has a proven track record and great products that we've integrated them fully into the AppHarvest team. His final international was against Ireland in March 1993. My answer to that is always; sustainability is profitability. He actively engages with his followers through his various social media accounts, including Instagram and Twitter. I fundamentally do not think its a tradeoff. I don't want to keep you all day, but before we wrap it up, I did want to talk to you a little bit about ESG, environmental sustainability governance issues. Copyright 2023 Surperformance. Typically, you would do 40 to 60 meetings to get a couple of investors. [laughs] This is something I'm very passionate about. I was very fortunate. Then Jeff Obin, who is on our board and has been an early investor. You can also follow him on Instagram. In the 1992 Five Nations, England won the title back-to-back for the first time since 1924, thanks to Webbs brace. The Motley Fool recommends AppHarvest, Inc. more. No one else in America is doing something at that scale. A universal harvester robot at AppHarvest's Morehead, Kentucky greenhouse, AppHarvests crops are monitored for quality control 24/7 and harvested robotically, a labor-saving advancement that lets the staff treat farming almost like a manufacturing process. Moser: That's going to do it for us this week, folks. The private markets don't need to be a part of the problem, but we can't just be quarterly earnings focused. Kentucky has been experiencing record amounts of rainfall in recent years, so for Webb, the location was obvious. We're ramping up and scaling quickly. Again, for us, it's about keeping our head down, growing good fruit and vegetables. I watch them, I watch their friends, the things that they care about. He has successfully completed over 200 operations using the Mako machine. MOREHEAD, Ky., Feb. 27, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AppHarvest, Inc. (NASDAQ: APPH, APPHW), a sustainable food company, public benefit corporation and Certified B Corp building some of the worlds largest high-tech indoor farms to grow affordable, nutritious fruits and vegetables at scale while providing good jobs in He scored 296 points for England and played in two Rugby World Cups including the 1991 final. Get stock recommendations, portfolio guidance, and more from The Motley Fool's premium services. Those are always famous last words as we move into some disruptive phase. We need to change the profits versus purpose narrative; purpose drives profit and, ultimately, is what makes an organization durable and resilient for decades to come, Webb told Fortune. We're investing in our workforce. It is a non-profit organization that provides education and social services to low-income residents living in low-income apartments. Project Access, Inc. was founded by Mr. Webb in 1999. Also referred to as blank check companies, the mechanism has existed for several years but has received increased attention of late. This will result in a $1.7 billion return of investment for the company. We've moved most of our fruit and vegetable production down to Mexico and we're importing and shipping in 2,000 miles. WebJonathan Webb, AppHarvest Inc: Profile and Biography - Bloomberg Markets Live Now Bloomberg TV+ Leaders with Lacqua:Mark Read WPP CEO Bloomberg Radio Meet the I love that passion. It means transparency. We're farmers, we are growing fruits and vegetables, and we're utilizing sunlight, we're utilizing rainwater. AppHarvest reaffirms guidance on full-year 2021 net revenue of $21 million and Adjusted EBITDA of ($41) million provided during its Analyst Day presentation on December 15, 2020. I think that's going to be something that just continues to get into the public's mind. Webb: To put this in perspective, this was our first facility under operations, our flagship facility. It means being a little bit more upfront with your investors. But if you look at all the problems in the agriculture system, this industry really solves most of those problems. San Francisco Bay Area, Silicon Valley), Total number of current Jobs the person has, CB Rank (Hub): Algorithmic rank assigned to the top 100,000 most active Hubs, Number of news articles that reference the Person, How AppHarvest Is Investing in the First Generation of High-Tech Farmers, AppHarvest May Not Be a Tasty Investment Yet, Agtech company AppHarvest debuts produce in select grocery stores, AppHarvest hires Impossible Foods David Lee as president, AppHarvest hires chief communications officer, Watch NASAs James Webb Space Telescope do high-tech origami, Varsity Spirits Webb on Bolstering the Middle Class, Jimmy Webb, Purveyor of Punk Fashion, Is Dead at 62, James Webb Space Telescope Successfully Deploys Its Mirror for the First Time. Accomplish what they wanted to pursue? If were all doing that, we have a pretty phenomenal organization.. What are you trying to accomplish? sold to the top 25 U.S. grocers. There's a level of rigor that comes with that, and so for us, the SPAC was just a vehicle. "The public market needs to have a robust category of companies that are building stuff that matters," he stressed. Most people every day are just concerned about can they put food on the table? US controlled environment agriculture (CEA) startup AppHarvest has announced a merger with NASDAQ-listed special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Novus Capital, enabling it to go public. We're a public benefit corporation, and we're B Corp certified. It hopes to expand into leafy greens, berries, cucumbers, and bell peppers in the future. Again, if we look at agriculture, there's a lot of trouble in our current agriculture system and we can use ESG metrics to clean up our food supply and create better food systems. Ten years ago, Tesla made electric vehicles popular in the mainstream, and right now, it's controlled environment agriculture. It feels like this is something that really is just getting some traction here. We're in that classic scenario of demand exceeding supply. We need to all collectively have a much more longer-term viewpoint on how we're building companies that are going to be good for communities, good for employees, and return a good return to our investors and shareholders. Jason Moser: It's Wednesday, May 26th, I'm your host, Jason Moser, and we've got a terrific interview to share with you on this week's Wildcard Wednesday show. One of AppHarvest's Crop Care Specialists operates a tomato-picking robot. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. I love your long-term focus. A specialist in knee surgery, Webb has performed countless surgeries in elite rugby union teams. We believe controlled environment agriculture is the third wave of sustainable infrastructure. Remember, you can always reach out to us on Twitter at @MFIndustryFocus, or drop us an email at [emailprotected] As always, people on the program may have interest in the stocks they talk about and The Motley Fool may have formal recommendations for or against, so don't buy or sell stocks based solely on what you hear. The system it uses reportedly reduces water usage by 90% compared to traditional open-field agriculture, while also eliminating runoff. Yahoo Finance's Julie Hyman at the 2022 SXSW Conference, 3 big things in investing you might have missed this week, UPDATE 1-North Korea says US causing international arms control collapse, EU releases funds, prepares aid flight for eastern Congo, Rheinmetall in talks on building tank factory in Ukraine - report, Ukraine Latest: Metsola Urges More Sanctions Pressure on Russia. Again, if you look at the U.S. right now, this is a USDA statistic, nearly 40% of fresh fruit and vegetables end up in a landfill. You can also compare Dr. Webb with other orthopedic surgeons in Eau Claire to find the one that best suits your needs. That world will look pretty different from the one we live in now, but Lessing assured me that even as AI gets firmly integrated into agriculture, AppHarvests robots are, fundamentally collaborative. To make the world smarter, happier, and richer. Putting a retention pond, we filter it with no chemicals and we're able to run our facility. AppHarvest is an indoor farming company, so has massive greenhouses Webb, a Kentucky native and University of Kentucky graduate, says he remains committed to his goal of employing large numbers of people at high-tech farms around the eastern half of the state. Webb, a former rugby player, has a wealth experience and is now helping players return to the sport they love. We're ramping up this first facility in the middle of a global pandemic, we had an ice storm. Webb is from Kentucky, where 16% of residents are Director recently sold US$216k worth of stock Nov 24 AppHarvest, Inc. You talk about sustainable. No. ", As a CEO, Webb admitted that this focus on the long-term outlook has not been easy to prove to Wall Street, especially when compared to those who are "selling a worthless product that's not good for people and not good for planet and arguably questionable for shareholders. WebJonathan Webb. Despite the off quarter, Webb has much to celebrate. Jonathan Webb is the largest individual Appharvest shareholder, owning 20.54M shares representing 19.04% of the company. But I wonder, is there something to your mind? With significant tailwinds from heightened investor focus on ESG initiatives and the secular shift to plant-based foods, we believe AppHarvest is well-positioned to execute on its strategy for rapid growth and value creation, he continued. By the end of next year, well quadruple that. Webb: Well, thank you and thank you for having me, and we've got a lot of work to do here, but I can assure you we're head down building and look forward to continuing the conversation another time. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Who were the most active food and agriculture technology venture capital firms in 2022. Its flagship facility is a 60-acre indoor farm in Morehead, a town of 8,000 in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, and it solely uses rainwater for its irrigation. Are we perfect? But then what have we done with Root AI? Look at the open fields in Mexico. AppHarvest has invested in a 2.76million-square-foot greenhouse in Morehead (Ky.) to help meet this goal. You have labor concerns. The company is building some of the largest indoor farms in the world, combining conventional agricultural techniques with todays technology to grow non-GMO, chemical-free produce to be. But for us, it's not a back-and-forth, it's not OK, well, I'm going to invest in an ESG company and I'm going to sacrifice profitability. With that difficult work that in mind, Webb has designed his company to grow as much produce as possible as sustainably as possible. By the end of next year, we'll have five operating facilities. With a 19% stake, CEO Jonathan Webb is the largest shareholder. Webb made a second appearance for England, and reached the final. Jonathan has a Bachelors degree from the University of Kentucky in Business. Follow him on Twitter to get more updates. Webb: The industry is at an inflection point. That's not the conversation at all. Talk a little bit about what ESG means to you and some of the things that you've done, because corporately you set your business up to be able to account for some of that transparency and whatnot. Jonathan Webb, CEO of agricultural technology and indoor farming startup AppHarvest, wants investors and founders alike to know that he doesnt struggle to balance purpose and profit; if a company loses track of the former, its only a matter of time until it loses the latter. ", "It's easy to be a CEO that's looking for the next three months," Webb stated. He has many impressive accomplishments. We're building large facilities to grow fruit and vegetables running completely on recycled rainwater using LED lights, software, and sensors. He also received his medical license from Minnesota. Prior to founding AppHarvest, Jonathan supported the Executive Director of the Army Office of Energy Initiatives to help meet the White House goal of supplying 20% of the Department of Defenses electricity usage from renewable Other AppHarvest investors include TV cook Martha Stewart, VC veteran Peter Thiel, ValueAct Capitals Spring Fund, Revolutions Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, Equilibrium Capital, and Narya the new VC firm co-founded by JD Vance, author of best-selling Appalachian memoir Hillbilly Elegy. The world's food and agriculture problems are not going to be solved overnight. He was born into a medical family. In light of the challenges AppHarvest has faced in its early stages, Webb expressed hope that younger generations like Gen Z and millennials would continue to innovate and "fight through" any obstacles in their way. WebGet Chad Hill's email address (c*****@appharvest.com) and phone number at RocketReach. According to AppHarvest's earnings report released Feb. 24, the company had net sales of $9.1 million and net loss of of $166.2 million in 2021. He has become a prominent social media star. But really its water and food first. AppHarvest raised $500 million on its balance sheet this year, went public on the Nasdaq, hired 400 people to work in its first facility, and brought its first product, beefsteak tomatoes, to grocery stores including Kroger, Walmart, and Publix. Moser: Yeah, absolutely. ESG should be at the core of profitability and it should be at the core of building a resilient company. Webb doesnt mince words on the specifics; the most valued companies in 100 years, he said, will be the ones that allow humanity to survive. He names a few: electronic vehicle manufacturers, renewable energy companies. The greenhouse will cost $97 million and span 60 acres. We dont have two planets though, so Webb got creative. Like every Kentuckian, Jonathan grew up knowing of the devastating job losses in the region. He has a particular interest in knee surgery and sports medicine. You have to get permitting, communities [buy-in], state and federal support, infrastructure, inspections. You have food safety concerns. The estimated value when the deal closes will be about a billion dollars for the company. "And we don't think we could do that if we weren't in the public markets.". We've been very fortunate and humbled that the Root AI team is fully a part of the AppHarvest team building robotics that's operating on AI, collecting data. WebAppHarvest salary income and net worth data provided by People Ai provides an estimation for any internet celebrity's real salary income and net worth like AppHarvest based on real There's not going to be one food company feeding the world. Moser: Yeah. Then we'll be able to give that data over to the grocer in more real-time. "Tech for good the consumer wants it. Jonathan Webb grew up in Kentucky and has been committed to developing I mean, that is right in line. The last thing I would say to that is whether or not we want to do it or not, the world is changing and regulators are approaching back. He is also becoming more involved with green shipping and is a council member of the London Shipping Law Centre. Later, in 1993, he relocated to the United Kingdom, where he completed his LLM. Since joining HFW in 2004, Mr. Webb has specialized in P&I and FD&D for ship owners. This is the direction in which the world is going, so companies better get on board [laughs] or get out of the way. One, our geographic location. He has published numerous papers on the topic of knee ligament injuries, arthroscopic surgery, and other techniques. We can better understand what product we are going to have available? A SPAC is formed with the sole purpose of raising capital through an IPO in order to acquire an existing privately-held company and take it public. Age : 37. Jonathan strives to work alongside the hard-working men and women of Eastern Kentucky and build an inclusive economy for the future. Webb: Well, I'll start by saying, anyone that is growing good, clean produce, without harsh chemical pesticides, I try to call them my colleagues, not competitors. If I'm a grocer and I'm saying U.S.-grown in a controlled environment we solve for all that. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Her estimated net worth is more than $15 million. AppHarvest knows its far from being the only player in the CEA game. I like thinking about a future where AppHarvest and companies like you all are helping make our food supply not only here domestically, but really around the world better, more reliable, more transparent. We'll talk a little bit about that in just a second. I'm Jason Moser, thanks for listening, and we'll see you next week. We're selling to Kroger, we're selling in fast food chains like Wendy's. Even though you entered at such a young stage of your business, You essentially were pre-revenue coming into the public markets, and now, you're just getting that started. Australian National University Alumni Founded Companies, Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University Alumni Founded Companies, Seattle Pacific University Alumni Founded Companies, Regis University Alumni Founded Companies, Emory University Alumni Founded Companies, New Mexico State University Alumni Founded Companies, Oakland University Alumni Founded Companies, Oklahoma State University Alumni Founded Companies, Number of Organizations that the person founded, Algorithmic rank assigned to the top 100,000 most active People, The organization associated to the person's primary job, Where the person is located (e.g. Here are five relaxing scents you can use in your bedroom. Executive Vice President and Head of Enterprise Development, Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry, Contract Support (U.S. Army Office of Energy Initiatives), Intelligent Assistance and Bots Ecosystem. We hit our Q1 guidance, $2.3 million in revenue. Webb grew up in Kentucky, and founded AppHarvest in 2017 after years in the solar development industry, based in New York. Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Flipboard, and LinkedIn. My competition in Mexico, you have people getting paid $5 a day. We could've raised capital privately on the balance sheet and kept building. Investors look at that, Peter Halt, AppHarvests newly appointed chief financial officer, told, Step aside, alt-protein: Bioplastics are the real agrifoodtech opportunity, The rise of the reused machines: Germanys E-Farm raises $5.3m Series A. But the futuristic pieces, we've combined a technology team with a great plant science group. Were investing heavily in our future, so were spending heavily today, he said. Jonathan Webb is the Founder and CEO of AppHarvest, a company that combines conventional agricultural techniques with cutting-edge technology to address That lowers transportation costs by 75%, allowing AppHarvest's fresher produce to better compete against low-cost foreign imports. It's so cool to think about what you guys are doing there. Again, the private markets get a very bad rap socially. Growing up in Appalachia, Jonathan Webb watched the slow decline of the coal industry firsthand. But being true to our ESG values, we think it is a competitive advantage and going to make us more competitive in the years to come. A specialist in knee surgery, Jonathan Webb was a rugby union fullback for the English national team from 1987 to 1993. Why is that important? Webb was raised in a white-bread, wealthy family. We pay every employee at AppHarvest a living wage.