The51 adds two industry-leading allies in AgTech and Venture Capital, Alison Sunstrum and Kookai Chaimahawong, on their mission to advance financial feminism.

Calgary, Alta, 12/8/2021—Alison Sunstrum and Kookai Chaimahawong, two highly reputable professionals in Agri-food, AgTech and venture capital, take on leading roles with The51's Food & AgTech Fund.

The51 has added two, new, powerhouse team members to their organization as part of their newly launched Food & AgTech Fund. Alison Sunstrum joins as a General Partner (GP) and Kookai Chaimahawong as Venture Partner. As both women have worked extensively with the Agri-food and AgTech sectors, both bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to The51’s venture capital space. 

Alison Sunstrum is a household name in Food and AgTech across the globe. As Founder and CEO of CNSRV-X Inc. (Conserve X), a Canadian company developing and investing in emerging technology in agriculture, and Venture Partner and LP at Builders VC, a San Francisco/Calgary venture capital fund investing in founders re-imagining large underinvested, antiquated industries, Sunstrum brings decades of experience to The51’s Food & AgTech Fund. Sunstrum is also a founding partner and Fellow in the Ag Stream of the Creative Destruction Lab (CDL), and was formerly the Co-founder and CEO of GrowSafe Systems Ltd, a Calgary-based company developing technology that improved animal well-being, profitability and reduced the environmental impact of livestock production. Among many other achievements in the agriculture sector, Sunstrum was most recently recognized as one of Canada’s most influential leaders in agriculture.

“The advances we make in agricultural bioscience and technology can tackle the world’s toughest challenges, from food security to climate change to future pandemics,” says Sunstrum. According to Sunstrum, we must increase our investment in science and research, but for Canadian agriculture to succeed, we must bring our inventions to market and face the "white elephant in the room" in agriculture and the Ag funding space. 

She goes on to share: “As a woman founder for more than two decades, finding capital and places to trial our innovations in Canada was not easy. Judging by the statistics, I would say it's not getting any easier. I am not sure we know how many Canadian founders have given up due to the inequities, or what our economy has lost as a result, but I do know that joining The51 as a General Partner is ‘being the change I want to see.”   

Kookai Chaimahawong joins The51 after nearly four years with Pangaea Ventures where she worked as an Investment Analyst and Associate, working with numerous agri-food and AgTech ventures identifying impact opportunities to help companies scale. Prior to her time with Pangaea, Chaimahawong worked with the United Nations Development Programme in Bangkok, Thailand, as a partnership consultant. Chaimahawong is currently Co-Chair of the Vancouver Entrepreneurs Forum and a Committee Member of Canadian Women in VC. With venture capital and impact investing background, Chaimahawong brings a wealth of experience to The51’s Food & AgTech Fund and will work closely with traditionally underfunded founders who are innovating the Food and AgTech sectors in Canada and the US.

“The51 Food & AgTech Fund has the ability to see opportunities that others don’t see because we have a community and network of entrepreneurs, founders and investors that are non-traditional to VCs,” says Chaimahawong. “While the food and agri-tech opportunities are recognized by many venture capital funds, few truly understand that diversity and inclusion drive performance."

Currently, AgTech is outpacing the overall venture capital market (2020 saw $5.15B invested and 2021 is on track to be another record year with $4.3B invested by mid-year). However, women and gender-diverse founders are still receiving far fewer deals and dollars; in 2018, women received just 7 per cent of Agri-food and AgTech deals and only 3 per cent of the record-breaking volume of dollars, all the while outperforming their male counterparts by 35 per cent. Additionally, Black, Indigenous and people of colour make up 5.1 per cent of the workforce in agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, but report access to capital as an ongoing and significant barrier for entry. The51’s Food & AgTech Fund is investing in this opportunity and investing in change.

Focused on founders who are underfunded by traditional venture capital, The51’s Food & AgTech Fund is a full-stack fund that’s boldly backing innovators and changing the landscape for underserved entrepreneurs. Aimed at pre-seed through Series A ventures, the Food & AgTech Fund will work with founders to develop ventures that meet ESG and EDI targets. The51 hopes this approach will set a new standard for businesses operating in Food and Agriculture Technology, embedding impact investing into the sectors in North America.

With a community of over 16,000 financial feminists, The51 is activating human and financial capital championing founder and venture development and growth. The51’s Food & AgTech Fund marks another ambitious step in their mission to challenge conventional venture capital pathways and build to the Financial Feminist™ economy.

Finally, The51’s Food & AgTech Fund has secured a lead LP and is actively fundraising for institutional and retail investment. The51 believes both types of investors bring something unique to the table for this fund—influence and reach, and human and intellectual capital, respectively. 

To learn more, visit the51.com/food-agtech-fund.

For media inquiries, please contact Carina Ludgate, Marketing Lead for The51 carina@the51.com.