Cultivian Sandbox Ventures
Venture capitalChicago · Seed–Late Stage · 9 people tracked
Also known as CULTIVIAN SANDBOX VENTURE MANAGEMENT II LLC · CULTIVIAN SANDBOX VENTURE MANAGEMENT, LLC
Investment thesis
Cultivian Sandbox Ventures focuses on the food and agriculture sector, which it views as undergoing major change driven by demographics, globalization, sustainability pressures, new energy sources, and food safety and security concerns. The firm invests in new and emerging companies working to increase sustainable production, equitable distribution, and healthy consumption. Founded by experienced operators from leading food and agriculture companies and backed by strategic limited partners, it supports companies that commercialize needed technologies and collaborate with strategic partners. The firm invests across the full value chain of food and agriculture to advance greater sustainability, security, and safety in the world's food system.
Source: firm website, verified Aug 3, 2026.
Team · 9 people
from public directories
What they invest in
from 12 of 28 portfolio companiesAgTech ×7Biotech ×6AI & Machine Learning ×4FoodTech ×4Cleantech ×2Advanced Manufacturing ×1Climate Tech ×1Cloud Computing ×1
HQs:United States×10Ireland×1
Investments · 28 tracked
founders shown can be your intro pathAgrivida develops enzyme technology for animal feed and nutrition, improving efficiency in poultry, swine, and other livestock production.
AgTechBiotechFoodTechMassachusetts, US
Rob Johnson(Director)R. Michael Raab(Executive Officer)Daniel Meagher(Executive Officer, Director)Mark Austin(Director)Robert Bucklin(Director)Ron Meeusen(Director)
Board seatRon Meeusen· per SEC Form D · $21.3M raise · filed Jan 2015
AgTechEmeryville, US
Cheryl Martin(Director)Paul Beck(Executive Officer)Dave Vosburg(Executive Officer)Adam Litle(Executive Officer, Director)Paimun Amini(Director)David Pierson(Director)
Board seatRon Meeusen· per SEC Form D
Vestaron Corporation makes peptide-based biological crop protection products, including its SPEAR family of bioinsecticides, for use in agriculture.
AgTechBiotechCleantechNew MaterialsKalamazoo, US
Juan Estupinan(Executive Officer, Director)Dawn de los Santos(Executive Officer)Robert Kennedy(Executive Officer)Elin D. Miller(Director)Philip Austin(Director)Ron Meeusen(Director)
Board seatRon Meeusen· per SEC Form D
AgTechMorrisville, US
TONY SIMPSON(Director)DENNIS DOUGHERTY(Director)BOB SHAPIRO(Director)BEN SHELTON(Director)STEVE CARNEVALE(Executive Officer)JOY PARR DRACH(Executive Officer, Director)
Minneapolis, US
Richard Pavelski(Director)Patrick Christie(Executive Officer, Director)Robert Shapiro(Director)
Advanced ManufacturingLos Angeles, US
Deborah Wei Mullin(Executive Officer, Director)
Culture Biosciences provides software and bioreactor hardware solutions for bioprocess development, enabling researchers to design, monitor, and analyze experiments remotely with cloud-native analytics and AI/ML insights.
AI & Machine LearningBiotechCloud ComputingHealthtechSan Francisco, US
Will Patrick(Founder/CEO)inMatt Ball(Founder/CTO)in
Des Moines, US
Amanda Donohue-Hansen(Director)Steven Brockshus(Executive Officer, Director)
Full Harvest builds an agentic intelligence platform that orchestrates transactions and operations across the North American fresh produce supply chain, helping buyers and growers navigate climate volatility, labor shortages, and regulatory complexity.
AgTechAI & Machine LearningLogistics & Supply ChainUnknown, US
IngredientWerks is a molecular farming company that engineers crops to produce animal-identical proteins as plant-based ingredients for the alternative protein food market.
AgTechBiotechFoodTechWoburn, US
Steve Snyder(Director)Clinton Bybee(Director)Ronald Warner Meeusen(Director)James Schultz(Director)Matthew Plavan(Executive Officer, Director)
Nuritas uses AI to discover bioactive peptides in plants and other natural sources and validates them through clinical trials, producing health ingredients such as PeptiStrong, PeptiSleep, and PeptiYouth.
AI & Machine LearningBiotechFoodTechDublin, IE
Dr. Nora Khaldi(Founder & CEO)John Casey(Chief Manufacturing & Supply Chain Officer)Conor Walshe(Chief Financial Officer)Alison Anderson(Chief People Officer)
Yardstick provides tools to measure, plan, and analyze soil carbon data, including instant soil carbon measurement, sample planning aligned with protocols such as Verra VM0042 and CAR SEP, and data mapping and auditing.
AgTechCleantechClimate Tech
Peptide-based biopesticides replacing synthetic pesticides.
Rows marked “SEC filing” are inferred from directors named on the company's SEC Form D — public regulatory data, not a portfolio list published by the firm.
Frequently asked questions
- What stage does Cultivian Sandbox Ventures invest at?
- Cultivian Sandbox Ventures invests at the Seed, Series A, Series B, Series C, Late Stage stages.
- What is Cultivian Sandbox Ventures's typical check size?
- Cultivian Sandbox Ventures typically writes checks of $5M – $15M.
- What sectors does Cultivian Sandbox Ventures focus on?
- Cultivian Sandbox Ventures focuses on AgTech, Cleantech, FoodTech, New Materials.
- Where is Cultivian Sandbox Ventures located?
- Cultivian Sandbox Ventures is headquartered in Chicago, US.
- Does Cultivian Sandbox Ventures lead rounds?
- Cultivian Sandbox Ventures typically participates in rounds rather than leading them.
Images
Co-investors · 3
Crosslink Capital is a San Francisco-based venture capital firm investing in enterprise and consumer technology startups across North America.
Euclid is a venture capital firm focused on investing in vertical AI companies that are redefining software across industries.
The JDRF T1D Fund is a venture philanthropy investor focused on type 1 diabetes (T1D), backing companies developing disease-modifying therapies and cures for the condition.
Firms observed investing alongside Cultivian Sandbox Ventures, from public investor directories. Shared companies are the overlap with Cultivian Sandbox Ventures's recorded portfolio.
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