Blockchain/AI/IoT | October 9, 2019

Soil Scout closes seed round to monitor and track soil health

Jessica Pothering
ImpactAlpha Editor

Jessica Pothering

ImpactAlpha, October 9 – Healthy soil is a critical resource for carbon capture and essential to food security. Helsinki-based Soil Scout is among a number of tech startups trying to improve awareness and management of soil health with sensor-enabled analytics platforms.

Soil Scout’s sensors are unique from other monitoring devices because they sit below ground, but can still communicate with wireless networks. “We have built a future-proof below-ground monitoring solution that can stay in operation and in-situ for decades,” Soil Scout’s Johannes Tiusanen explained.

Soil Scout doesn’t explicitly market its sensors for high-impact environments. It touts recreational and commercial uses—for sports fields and golf courses, for example. But Tiusanen, the company’s founder, designed the system with farmers in mind, whose land quality can be affected by inadequate irrigation or overuse of fertilizers and pesticides.

Swedish outdoor equipment manufacturer Husqvarna Group invested an undisclosed amount of seed funding in the startup.