VIPC Awards Commonwealth Commercialization Fund Grant to KAPPA AgTech

CCF grants support startups, critical early technology testing and market validation efforts

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES, June 26, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ — The Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC) today announced that KAPPA AgTech has been awarded a Commonwealth Commercialization Fund (CCF) grant for $75,000. VIPC’s CCF programs have distributed more than $49 million to Virginia-based startups, entrepreneurs and university-based inventors since 2012.

Based in Vienna, Va., KAPPA AgTech develops agricultural technology that enables cultivators to grow more sustainably and reduce costs. The company’s patented integration of canopy ventilation within high-efficiency LED light fixtures allows previously unattainable efficiency in power consumption, lighting uniformity and microclimate control, and their food-grade silicone substrate promises to replace peat and other disposable growing media for Controlled Environment Agriculture. This CCF grant will help KAPPA AgTech to produce production prototypes of food-grade silicone substrate, evaluate its potential to replace disposable growth medium for applications in greenhouse and indoor farming, as well as solicit customer feedback and secure customers for early adoption.

“We are thrilled to receive a CCF grant from VIPC,” said Mr. Schuyler Milton, founder of KAPPA AgTech. “Reusable silicone substrate replaces peat and all other forms of disposable growing media in hydroponics. This improvement opens many new pathways toward sustainability for Controlled Environment Agriculture, and this big step forward in development would not have been possible without support from VIPC. This advancement will allow growers to simplify their global supply chains, reduce their carbon footprint, and most importantly, compete more aggressively with conventional field production to deliver fresher produce to the shelves with a higher standard of food safety.”

“We are pleased to award a CCF grant to KAPPA AgTech,” said Jeanette Townsend, VIPC Director for Private Sector Grants. “VIPC’s CCF grant program plays an important role in getting funding to Virginia-based pre-seed and seed-stage startups when they need it most. Our goal is to help Virginia companies grow and lead the nation in innovation, opportunity, and job creation. KAPPA AgTech is innovating in areas that will have a direct impact on agriculture and is paving the way for more sustainability for indoor cultivation.”

CCF accepts applications and awards funding on a rolling basis to Virginia’s small businesses and university-based innovators. This competitive grant program seeks to fund high-potential Virginia-based for-profit technology companies at the early stage of commercialization and provides grants up to $75,000. The grants support early technology and market validation efforts such as the development of prototypes or a minimum viable product (MVP), customer pilots, intellectual property protection, and more. For more information on funding opportunities and eligibility requirements, or to apply, visit the CCF pages at www.VirginiaIPC.org.

About the Commonwealth Commercialization Fund (CCF)
VIPC’s Commonwealth Commercialization Fund (CCF) was launched on July 1, 2020 to foster innovative and collaborative efforts in Virginia. Combining two legacy state programs, the Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) and the Virginia Research Innovation Fund (VRIF), CCF seeks technologies with a high potential for economic development and job creation and that position the Commonwealth as a national leader in science- and technology-based research, development, and commercialization.

About Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC)
VIPC: Connecting innovators with opportunities. As the nonprofit operations arm of the Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority (VIPA), VIPC is the commercialization and seed stage economic development driver in the Commonwealth that leads funding, infrastructure, and policy initiatives to support Virginia’s innovators, entrepreneurs, startups, and market development strategies. VIPC collaborates with local, regional, state, and federal partners to support the expansion and diversification of Virginia’s economy.

Programs include: Virginia Venture Partners (VVP) | VVP Fund of Funds (SSBCI) | Virginia Founders Fund (VFF) |Commonwealth Commercialization Fund (CCF) | Petersburg Founders Fund (PFF) | Smart Communities | The Virginia Smart Community Testbed | The Virginia Unmanned Systems Center | Virginia Advanced Air Mobility Alliance (VAAMA) | The Public Safety Innovation Center |Entrepreneurial Ecosystems | Regional Innovation Fund (RIF) | Federal Funding Assistance Program (FFAP) for SBIR & STTR | University Partnerships | Startup Company Mentoring & Engagement. For more information, please visit www.VirginiaIPC.org. Follow VIPC on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Angela Costello, Vice President of Communications
Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC)
[email protected]
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