California’s agriculture industry is not only massive but also one of the most profitable in the country, accounting for a disproportionate fraction of the food Americans eat (as opposed to e.g. corn for distillers/biofuels/animal feed) and US exports to the rest of the world. Based on cash receipts, California is #1 in the country overall (Iowa is second followed by Nebraska and Texas)
Don’t think I’m going out on a limb suggesting a Fresno farmer will receive an Ann Arbor or Irvine-based start-up more warmly than one from San Francisco.
Oh I’ll take your word on that, having no ag-sales experience myself :-)
Just wanted to point out that even before accounting for industry size, there’s just more profit sloshing around California’s ag industry which makes it easier to square market fit with the returns VCs desire.
