Salient launches new weather metrics for agriculture sector

Salient Predictions, a Boston-based technology company that creates the world's most accurate subseasonal-to-seasonal (S2S) weather forecasts and analytics, announced the launch of a new suite of weather metrics that will provide agribusiness and food producers with data to make faster, smarter decisions.

"Agriculture businesses are experiencing first-hand the effects of our changing climate," said Matt Stein, CEO of Salient. "Having more accurate, long-term weather metrics that go far beyond what's possible today gives them a critical advantage for resource planning and preparedness in the face of increasing climate disruptions."

The company's new agriculture metrics incorporate hyper-localized forecast data that's relevant to the agriculture sector. This data is based on Salient's industry-leading ocean and land-surface forecasting technologies developed from decades of research at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and MIT. Localized parameters, including soil moisture, surface runoff, and frost and drought risk indices, will enable agribusiness and food producers to better prepare for future weather conditions and potential supply chain disruptions.

"These new and enhanced metrics enable agribusinesses to better anticipate the impacts of weather on their operations," said Janet Lee, Chief Product Officer at Salient.

"By contextualizing the forecast in the local environment, Salient can answer the question, 'What does this forecast mean for me?'," noted Anthony Atlas, Salient's Head of Agriculture and Supply Chain. "This helps agribusinesses better anticipate the needs of their customers and proactively place the right products at the right time to maximize the benefits realized."

Salient's new agriculture solutions build on the company's success in the agriculture sector. In 2021, Salient and BASF announced an agreement that provided BASF customers with accurate long-range, seasonal weather forecasting data to enable precise agronomic decisions. Salient's recent research has focused on the intensification of the global water cycle and the role that ocean salinity has in predicting subseasonal-to-seasonal weather events for agriculture, energy, insurance, and supply chain and logistics businesses. A recent paper discovered remote salinity predictors for heavy rain in the Midwest, which should help farmers and businesses adapt to increasingly volatile weather conditions.

To further bolster its agronomic and technology expertise, Salient also announced the addition of three new employees to its team, Janet Lee, Anthony Atlas and Karl Critz.

Lee joins Salient as Chief Product Officer, with a 25-plus year track record of building award-winning technology products for companies that include FirstFuel, Oracle and Lattice Engines. Atlas is Salient's new Head of Agriculture and Supply Chain, offering substantial experience in climatetech and agtech startups, most recently at ClimateAI and Ceres Imaging. Finally, Critz joins Salient as Chief Technology Officer and brings extensive experience in renewable energy and cleantech as an engineer, consultant and executive leader who, most recently, served as the Chief Technology Officer for REsurety, Inc.

"The addition of Janet, Anthony and Karl reflects the significant momentum we're experiencing here at Salient, following the closure of our $5.4M seed round in May," said Stein. "I couldn't be more excited about Salient's future. Having these three talented individuals on our team will make a huge impact on the work we do for all of our clients."