Brekland, a Brooklyn-based startup building a biodegradable foam coating for crop protection, was awarded the $1 million grand prize in the 2025 Grow-NY Food and Agriculture business competition. The company is among seven winners splitting a total of $3 million in prize money.
State & National Entrepreneurial Programs
Our state and national entrepreneurship programs create connections for startups to access the funding, mentorship, and networks needed to commercialize their innovations. These initiatives help bridge the gap between academic discovery and market-ready technologies, accelerating the launch of successful startups.
Grow-NY Business Competition
Business competition growing an enduring food and agriculture innovation cluster
Interior Northeast I-Corps Hub (IN I-Corps)
Taking innovation from the laboratory to the marketplace
Northeast Regional Food Business Center
Helping farmers and food businesses access new markets and available resources
Northeastern Dairy Product Innovation Competition
Competition for innovators using raw milk and/or dairy ingredients
NSF Engines Development Award: Upstate 2.0
Transitioning Upstate New York to a climate-smart economy
Southern Tier Startup Alliance (STSA)
A member organization of business incubators in the Southern Tier
Impact
Our programs bring entrepreneurs together in a community of innovation.
$18 million+ awarded to startups through competitions, grants, and follow-on funding
Over 150 regional courses for tech innovators
Over 200 businesses started and supported through our programs
Regional and National Partners
We partner with dozens of regional and national organizations to bring our programs to life and support innovators at any stage of their entrepreneurship journey.
News in State & National Entrepreneurship Programs
Brekland wins $1 million Grow-NY prize at Canandaigua summit
Grow-NY Summit to Award $3 Million to Global Startups Redefining Food, Agriculture and Sustainability
Grow-NY, the largest global food and agriculture business competition, will host its annual Food & Ag Summit on Wednesday, Nov. 12 and Thursday, Nov. 13 in Canandaigua, New York.
ClearLeaf Raises $3.5 Million in Expansive Funding Round
2024 Grow-NY winner ClearLeaf recently closed a $3.5 million seed financing round, taking the next step in formulating non-toxic agricultural products to protect crops.
Applications open for seventh annual Grow-NY competition
Applications for the annual Grow-NY food and agriculture business competition are open to high-growth agrifood startups through May 15.
Empire State Development Announces Selected Finalists for Round Six of Annual $3 Million Grow-NY Global Business Competition
Inventing a new product that you can hold in your hands and bring successfully to an eagerly awaiting market is sometimes likened to childbirth: If we knew from the outset how hard it was going to be, fewer of us would do it.
Dairy Competition Winner Awarded $200K Grant
Laura Mack, the owner of an independent ice cream parlor called lu•lu Ice Cream in Vergennes, Vermont, won a $200,000 Existing Dairy Processor Expansion Grant from the Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center (NEDBIC) in November.
I-Corps Alumni Make Humanitarian Impact in Ukraine
Safe Pro AI, co-founded by Binghamton University alumni Jasper Baur and Gabriel Steinberg, is a Safe Pro Group company leveraging AI and machine learning to detect, label, and map mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO).
Grow-NY Winners Aim to Make Regional Economic Impact
Hypercell Technologies of Peachtree Corners, Georgia, was named the $1 million grand prize winner of the fifth annual Grow-NY Food and Agriculture business competition. Six other winners split a combined $3 million in awards.
Governor Hochul Announces Round Five Winners of the Grow-NY Food and Agriculture Business Competition
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced Hypercell Technologies, of Peachtree Corners, Georgia as the grand-prize winner of this year’s Grow-NY business competition.