5. Four-year checkpoint—2-3 percent of non-harvest is automated but 0 percent of harvest. We decided at the year four mark to see how we were doing against our 50 percent automation objective. The short version is that we must split automation into two segments: harvest and non-harvest. For non-harvest, we believe that as of 2024, 2-3 percent of farm labor has been automated, and we see a clear path forward to turn that number into 15-20 percent (with upside if additional startups begin to scale) in the next five to seven years. For harvest, the results are vastly different. So far, nobody has been able to create an automation harvester for specialty crops that has reached commercialization at scale—we are effectively at 0 percent automation at this point with some promising technology out there, but nobody starting to scale in earnest. Many startups have struggled to get the right combination of robotic hand and software that can pick crops gentle enough and put them in a container without damaging them, and at the same time. AgriFoodTech VC is down 80 percent in four years and much of the capital is going to non-harvest because it is working. We are taking a new approach to try and make progress on harvest automation without venture capital.
6. In 2026, WG will launch a grower capital collaborative approach to harvest. We are still working through a lot of details, but we have decided to launch an RFP process around iceberg lettuce harvest automation. This project will have multiple phases, including a collaborative product requirements document (PRD) developed in collaboration with growers and innovators, a request for proposal (RFP) to determine the best go-forward R&D and strategic options and then more collaboration with manufacturers to build the machine once R&D is completed. This will be a completely grower-funded initiative with no venture capital participating, and growers that put up the early risk capital will receive four primary benefits: (1) input into the R&D and strategic design process; (2) shared risk capital—the risk will be spread out among multiple grower organizations; (3) most-favored nation (MFN) pricing status; and (4) exclusivity over a fixed period of time (expected to be two to three years). Once exclusivity is over, the equipment designs will be available to all via open source and all growers can work with manufacturers they choose to get the machines into their operation. It’s an exciting new direction that involves a fair amount of risk, driven in part by the need to figure out harvest alternatives in an environment where there are no current success stories and venture capital has been reduced significantly, with little chance of it coming back to 2021 levels any time soon. Look for more information from us as we work through the details on this project.
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13 Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com November | December 2025
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