The archive · Climate & Energy · Strategic decision · 2016–2024
Pure Harvest bet desert greenhouses can replace Gulf food imports; $387M raised by 2022
UAE agritech grows tomatoes and strawberries in desert greenhouses; $180.5M 2022 round took total raised to $387M, now expanding into Asia
Pure Harvest Smart Farms
What the business is
A UAE agritech company growing fruits and vegetables in controlled-environment greenhouses in desert climates.
Starting capital：$5.8M seed round, Mena's largest at the time
How it started
Founded in October 2016 in Abu Dhabi by Sky Kurtz, Mahmoud Adi and Robert Kupstas. The Gulf imports most of its food, so the founders bet on controlled-environment agriculture (CEA) to grow fresh produce locally in harsh climates.
What happened
Raised a then-record $5.8M Mena seed round led by Shorooq Partners and the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund. In June 2022, with COVID and the Russia-Ukraine war exposing food-supply fragility, Pure Harvest closed a $180.5M convertible round with Metric Capital Partners, Korea's IMM Investment Corp and Saudi's Olayan Group, bringing total capital raised to $387.1M.
How it ended up
Operates commercial farms in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman; in September 2024 it hired Rothschild to raise at least $100M more as it enters Singapore and Morocco and spins off its Saudi business into an independent entity. Founder says existing farms are profitable and growing; an IPO is being considered for 2028.
Background
Pure Harvest Smart Farms was founded in Abu Dhabi in October 2016 by Sky Kurtz, Mahmoud Adi and Robert Kupstas on a simple wager: the Gulf imports the vast majority of its food, so high-tech greenhouses that can grow premium produce in the desert should find a permanent market. The company started with a single controlled-environment farm outside Abu Dhabi, growing tomatoes and berries, and raised Mena's largest-ever seed round of $5.8M led by Shorooq Partners and the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund.
The bet matured in 2022 as COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war rattled global food supply chains. In June 2022 Pure Harvest closed a $180.5M convertible financing, its largest round, backed by UK's Metric Capital Partners, Korea's IMM Investment Corp and Saudi's Olayan Group, taking total capital raised to $387.1M and making it one of the best-funded startups in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region. The company used the money to expand farms across the Gulf and enter Asian markets.
By September 2024 Pure Harvest operated commercial farms in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman, with founder Kurtz telling Semafor the existing farms were profitable and growing. The company hired Rothschild & Co to raise at least $100M more as it expanded into Singapore and Morocco, spun off its Saudi operation as an independent entity, and considered a public listing around 2028. The food-security rationale that created the company had not changed; the question was how fast it could scale.
What has to be true
- The Gulf's structural dependence on imported food gives local growers a durable pricing premium that does not disappear in a downturn.
- The team started with one farm and a premium-product wedge, proving unit economics before raising at scale.
- Crises (COVID, the Ukraine war) converted a long-term bet into an urgent government and investor priority, accelerating capital availability.
- Founders kept ownership of the technology and operating playbook, which is why later investors backed expansion into new countries rather than building rivals.
What can be applied
A costly, hard-to-scale physical bet can work when the problem is structural and recurring: a region that imports nearly all its food will keep paying a premium for reliable local supply.
Aftermath
As of September 2024, Pure Harvest was scaling rather than wound down: it ran profitable farms across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman, had hired Rothschild & Co to raise at least $100M, and was planning entry into Singapore and Morocco while spinning off its Saudi business into a standalone entity. Management was also exploring an IPO around 2028. The company's stated mission remained providing locally grown produce to import-dependent regions, with Asia as the next market.
Sources
- Pure Harvest raises $1.75 million
- Pure Harvest Smart Farms secures USD $180.5 million from global investors to fund expansion
- UAE agritech startup raises $180 million for Asia expansion
- UAE: Pure Harvest seeking at least $100M for expansion
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