By Brad Robb | Apr 12, 2018

Spring-boarding off the success from its initial event in 2017, organizers of Davos on the Delta are shaping the agenda for one of the Mid-South’s most intimate events centered on the future of agriculture. “This event is about bringing together cutting-edge, and in some cases, futuristic agricultural technologies and the conversations surrounding them,” says John D. Santi, who along with Carter Williams, CEO, iSelect Fund, St. Louis, Mo., are co-founders of Davos on the Delta. Other organizations supporting and helping to drive the event include the Memphis-based AgLaunch, Agricenter International, and Ducks Unlimited. Last year’s event had farmers representing about a million acres of directly owned land, and included agricultural minds from as far away as Australia who recognize the Mid-South as an important agricultural epicenter. Several group types are attracted to this event which takes its name from Davos, Switzerland, where the World Economic Forum was held earlier this year. “These groups influence the way startup companies come to the commercial market,” says Santi. “There are strategic investors experienced at bringing technologies to market, customers willing to take a chance on new technologies, and investors who selectively supply the capital.” Topics like democratizing seed technology are discussed, allowing a farmer to differentiate his products in terms of having a seed that is specific to what a consumer wants. “It’s almost a paradigm shift to contract farming,” says Santi. Davos is being branded as a secure forum where forward-thinking inventors feel comfortable enough to speak openly and share their current works or future ideas without fearing they will be stolen or copied. (read more)