SYDNEY: ROOTS Sustainable Agricultural Technologies Limited reported its entry into the Canadian agricultural market with the signing of a non-binding exclusive agreement with Water Ways Technologies Inc.
Water Ways is a leading Israeli based agriculture technology company that specialises in providing water irrigation equipment solutions to farmers around the world.
Under the terms of the agreement, Water Ways will have the right to import and sell ROOTS’ patented Root Zone Temperature Optimization (RZTO) technology in Canada and capitalise on Water Ways Technologies’ established market presence where it has well-entrenched commercial relationships.
No fees are payable by either party and Roots’ income will come from sales of the systems by Water Ways. The agreement is for an initial period of nine months.
Established in Israel in 2004, Water Ways Technologies is an irrigation and agriculture technology company and a global provider of smart irrigation and water systems solutions for agricultural producers. Its proprietary Precise Irrigation System has been deployed in over 15 countries by fresh produce cooling rooms, vineyards, water reservoirs, fish farms and sorghum silos.
ROOTS and Water Ways have been assessing collaboration opportunities for six months and have determined that the RZTO technology complements and strengthens Water Ways’ smart irrigation and water system solutions offering a comprehensive solution to meet the needs of both RZTO as well as smart system of water for irrigation.
Canada has excellent potential for ROOTS as it is one of the largest agricultural producers and exporters in the world with agricultural and agri-food exports valued at $85 billion by 2025 (Report of Canada’s Economic Strategy Tables: Agri-food). With federal programs like the “Canadian Agricultural Partnership”, a five-year, C$3 billion investment program launched by the federal government, Canada is actively promoting Ag-Tech innovations.
Both companies are reviewing opportunities in Canada’s cannabis market given the industry’s rapid growth and investment. Competition in the sector is driving cannabis prices down, pressuring companies to find new and innovative technology solutions to reduce production and energy costs. A combination of ROOTS’ RZTO and Water Ways’ irrigation technology could potentially deliver Canadian growers with a major competitive advantage.
ROOTS CEO and co-founder Dr. Sharon Devir said: “ROOTS continues to strengthen its presence in North America and we see considerable scope for growth in Canada by partnering with Water Ways. By combining our respective technologies to deliver a better outcome for growers, we are exceptionally well-placed to capture sales more rapidly. Water Ways’ well-established presence in Canada also provides us with a seamless and cost-effective market entry.
“Both companies have identified the cannabis sector as a market that presents significant commercial opportunity, and if we can deliver growers in Canada with a technology-led pricing advantage, we are confident we can build a strong presence here. We look forward to reporting on progress in Canada with Water Ways.”
Ohad Haber Water Ways CEO commented: “We are excited to introduce to the Canadian Irrigation market ROOTS’ Root Zone Temperature Optimization technology. We are convinced that the system has enormous technological advantages for the cannabis cultivation sector as well as the broader agribusiness sector. We look forward to working with the ROOTS’ team to implement a initial systems in 2020.”