The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Tesla. In the latter, Webb was the only English player to score in the game. Jonathan strives to work alongside the hard-working men and women of Eastern Kentucky and build an inclusive economy for the future. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. He is an ex-rugby player who represented England from 1987 to 1993, reaching the World Cup Final and winning two Five Nations grand slam titles. Its first crop will be non-GMO tomatoes, which will be provided to a number of US grocers. But then there's the other side, and introducing robotics that's operating on AI, that's collecting data in our facility and making data-driven decisions. Project Access offers ESL/ESL classes, after school programs, and computer literacy. AppHarvest (APPH) CEO Jonathan Webb said the company has its eyes on the long term as it looks to "institutionalize" controlled environment agriculture (CEA). We want to make sure you get the most out of our platform. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Webb is from Kentucky, where 16% of residents are below the poverty line, and when the coal jobs dried up, nothing came in to replace them. WebThe following charts show the stock performance of securities subsequent to each open-market, non-planned trade made by Jonathan Webb. "In less than They're not going to be solved in a month or a year or a quarter and we just want to build an organization that's going to be able to go toe-to-toe with the larger incumbents out there, and the best way to do that is to have that rigor of being a publicly traded company. He pointed out that, At NASA in the 60s, if you would go visit a facility and you walked up to a janitor and asked, What do you do here? they would say, Im working to put a man on the moon. Thats been the same mentality here Its the collective thats making this thing possible.. Sometimes, it can even get us a few steps closer to saving he world. We're going to be headquartered in Central Appalachia, execution at scale here in the U.S. but this is a global problem that we've gotten phone calls from around the world about how and when we can take our solution and go elsewhere. There's a level of rigor that comes with that, and so for us, the SPAC was just a vehicle. We have a phenomenal growing team. Youre reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fools Premium Investing Services. Appharvest has Your email address will not be published. That's because of our inefficient systems in the supply chain. We're one of four companies that are publicly traded that have both of those as a company. Again, if we look at agriculture, there's a lot of trouble in our current agriculture system and we can use ESG metrics to clean up our food supply and create better food systems. Copyright 2023 Surperformance. His vision of the future of farming and much, much more. Cell ag experts weigh in, Keep calm and carry on: Navigating the trough of disillusionment for plant-based meat, Its been a very dark week Miyoko Schinner hits back as company accuses her of hatching plot to steal IP, With $3bn in deals, top 10 climate x agrifoodtech startups prove themselves a vital part of climate tech ecosystem, BII eyes full-stack startups, ag marketplaces & embedded financing as it earmarks funds for Africa, Smoke & mirrors, not worth the extra cost: 50 US farmers speak out on carbon markets. We dont have two planets though, so Webb got creative. Director recently sold US$216k worth of stock Nov 24 AppHarvest, Inc. Again, if you look at the U.S. right now, this is a USDA statistic, nearly 40% of fresh fruit and vegetables end up in a landfill. He has become a prominent social media star. A specialist in knee surgery, Jonathan Webb was a rugby union fullback for the English national team from 1987 to 1993. AppHarvest which raised $28 million in its Series C round in August is launching what it describes as the worlds largest greenhouse later this year, consisting of a 2.76 million square foot facility in Morehead, Kentucky. Project Access, Inc. was founded by Mr. Webb in 1999. Webb started his professional career in 1989 as a Durban maritime lawyer firm. WebFounder & CEO, AppHarvest Kentucky native and University of Kentucky graduate Jonathan Webb is turning his dream of a high-tech farming hub in Appalachia into reality with AppHarvest. Part of it is that building big stuff fast in the US is very hard. That might sound straight from science fiction, but AppHarvests CTO Josh Lessing, who designed many of these universal harvesting systems says we only think that because farming has been so slow to innovate. Most of those employees were hired in the midst of 2020, something that Webb considers a testament to the trust his community has placed in AppHarvest. Growing up in Appalachia, Jonathan Webb watched the slow decline of the coal industry firsthand. Running AppHarvest this way definitely creates extra workthe company even has facilitators who help employees navigate unexpected life events that might prevent them from coming to workbut its work Webb considers essential. One of AppHarvest's Crop Care Specialists operates a tomato-picking robot. While living in Washington D.C. developing sustainable energy farms, Jonathan researched another type of farming the Netherlands and its high-tech greenhouses that in a single acre yield as much as 10 outdoor acres and virtually eliminate the use of chemicals. "Tech for good the consumer wants it. S&P Index data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. That's not the conversation at all. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. It means being a little bit more upfront with your investors. For us, we're looking at metrics, how can we be more sustainable? The company is building some of the largest indoor farms in the world, combining conventional agricultural techniques with todays technology to grow non-GMO, chemical-free produce to be. In the same year, he scored his second try after just 23 seconds. I pay attention to my kids. Putting a retention pond, we filter it with no chemicals and we're able to run our facility. I hope you enjoy our conversation. One of AppHarvest's mobile units ready to fight the food fight, outside of AppHarvest's offices in [+] Lexington, Kentucky, If we cant treat people with dignity and respect who put food on our table, where do we think humanity is going to end up? By us running on completely recycled rainwater, we have no water cost. Despite IPOs last year having the worst returns in a decade, Webb said he believed 2021 was an important time for the company to go public and stood by the decision to take the company's mission "directly to the Street" and to receive the "rigor of Wall Street early," which he claimed will only make the company "stronger in the long run.". The system it uses reportedly reduces water usage by 90% compared to traditional open-field agriculture, while also eliminating runoff. Now, we want to turn this region into an area of the country that's known for sustainable food production, but beyond just loving the place, I'm from Kentucky, beyond just loving this area, we can get to three quarters of the U.S. on a day drive. Webb supported a large-scale solar project in Virginia while he was employed by the U.S. Department of Defense. I'm sure it was an exciting time. AppHarvest is recovering from a challenging third quarter, in which it reported a net loss of over $17 million; Webb attributes it to hyper-growth. And because of the work they are doing, those companies will be able to hire the brightest people, despite resignation trends. Do the hard work to create shareholder value now while also looking out for shareholders two decades from now, Webb said is his credo. I would not want to be one of those large operators and food today when you see the consumer trends changing as quickly as they are, and we feel very optimistic again about where our growth trajectory is. You are speaking our language here at The Fool. We're focused on bringing that production back from Mexico that has been shifted outside of the U.S. and bring that back into the U.S. in a controlled environment. The Great Resignation has not affected AppHarvest, because people who were leaving companies were leaving worthless companies that added no value to society, or were destroying society, Webb said. I think they certainly will be. Did we help them reach their goals? We're in that classic scenario of demand exceeding supply. I love that passion. I think it's clear that investors should really be excited for the future of AgTech. How do you feel about coming public a lot earlier than you probably would've normally? You have climate disruption. WebJonathan Webb. When he says sustainable, he doesnt just mean that in an environmental sense. After serving as an assistant public defender in Marylands Office of the Public Defender, Webb joined Ethridge Quinn for 2020. Learn More. We're feeding our country with people in Mexico who are making $5 a day. Because our services are focused on technology, 5G connectivity, and all of the different benefits we're going to get from that. WebThe combined company will be led by Jonathan Webb, AppHarvests Founder & Chief Executive Officer. That to me, was in a nutshell what it's all about. Jonathan Webb was born on 24 August 1963, in London, England. Again to some of your viewers that aren't aware of Root AI just look them up and take a look at some of those videos. Jonathan Webb grew up in Kentucky and has been committed to developing sustainable projects from Central Appalachia. I know that you're not the only one focused on controlled environment agriculture. If you want to know how wealthy he is, read on! But its confident in its approach. Jonathan Webb currently follows over 1 million people. We could've raised capital privately on the balance sheet and kept building. We love DC, but we don't want to just be selling to the high-end restaurants in DC. "We see this as a couple-decade journey, and really, we're in our first decade," Webb told Yahoo Finance's Julie Hyman at the 2022 SXSW Conference (video above). Sustainable investor Equilibrium AppHarvest is a unique and compelling investment opportunity that is redefining American agriculture by improving access for all to fresh non-GMO produce, growing more with fewer resources, and creating an agtech hub from within Appalachia, Novus chairman Bob Laikin said in a statement. The mission-driven approach Webb has prioritized is the companys main selling point both for investors and potential employees, whom he works to lure away from billion-dollar conglomerates. I want to figure out what I can do, as CEO, to ensure everyone has the resources to succeed. The method of farming uses technology like artificial intelligence and robotics to grow fruits and vegetables, producing 30 times the yield of traditional farming while using 90% less water, the company claims. I was hoping maybe we could talk a little bit about that idea that you're farmers and futurists. As founder and CEO of AppHarvest, Ive been listening to a podcast called The Future of Farming and Investing, where Jonathan Webb discusses how AppHarvest has built a three-million-square-foot indoor farm, twice as large as Amazons largest distribution center. I know you're busy. We're ramping up and scaling quickly. Dr. Jonathan Webb, a specialist knee surgeon at Nuffield Health Bristol Hospital, is the doctor. Webb was raised in a white-bread, wealthy family. Originally from Kentucky, Webb is dedicated to sustainable projects in Central Appalachia. A Kentucky native and University of Kentucky graduate, Jonathan Webb is turning his dream of a high-tech farming hub in Appalachia into reality with AppHarvest. We need to change the profits versus purpose narrative; purpose drives profit and, ultimately, is what makes an organization durable and resilient for decades to come, Webb told Fortune. You look at California and the Southwest of the U.S., drying up, drought-stricken, flagged by wildfires. Later, in 1993, he relocated to the United Kingdom, where he completed his LLM. AppHarvest raised over $475 million in a public IPO, but it is not over. To me, at least, it feels like we are at the [] of a disruptive phase here, and a lot of that is thanks to technology. sold to the top 25 U.S. grocers. A SPAC is formed with the sole purpose of raising capital through an IPO in order to acquire an existing privately-held company and take it public. As I was listening, there was a quote, you said, "We are farmers and futurists."