US venture capital firm Bessemer Ventures has led a $NZ85 million ($79 million) Series C funding round for New Zealand agritech company Halter.
The oversubscribed raising has been supported by existing investors, Silicon Valley-based DCVC, Blackbird Ventures, New Zealand firm Icehouse Ventures and Rocket Lab founder Peter Beck.
Halter raised $NZ32 million in a Series B round in April 2021 and has now raised a total of $NZ125 million.
Halter founder and chief executive Craig Piggott said he had been talking to Bessemer for some years including during the prior raise.
“This time around they were very excited with the progress and keen to lead,” he said.
Halter has initially targeted raising $NZ80 million for the Series C round but increased that becasue of investor demand, Piggott said.
Halter has developed a lightweight solar-powered collar for cattle which uses IoT and GPS to enable farmers to control and monitor their herds from a mobile phone app.
The system uses Pavlovian conditioning to teach cattle to respond to a signals – vibrations and sounds – emitted by the collar. Halter also enables farmers to monitor the location and condition of individual animals. Alerts can be set up to warn when animals are lying down longer than usual, useful to indicate whether they may be unwell or ready to give birth.
Since Blackbird led Halter’s Series B round, the company has been focusing on expansion, offering its product to farmers across New Zealand. The company has carried out pilot projects in Australia and Ireland but Piggott declined to provide a timetable for international expansion. He said the company added around 100,000 collars to its lease program in 2022 and there remained a “phenomenal” market in New Zealand. Collars are leased on a subscription model with Halter retaining ownership of the equipment and providing maintenance.
Founded in 2016, Halter now employs more than 180 people.
Image: Halter founder Craig Piggott with a cow wearing the company’s hardware.