
Investments
111Portfolio Exits
5Partners & Customers
7About South Carolina Research Authority
South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is a non-profit organization that advances South Carolina's Knowledge Economy by supporting early-stage entrepreneurial companies through its SC Launch program, conducting applied research and delivering technology solutions to federal and corporate clients and building and operating research parks and Innovation Centers. The company was founded in 1983 and is based in Columbia, South Carolina.

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Latest South Carolina Research Authority News
Feb 2, 2023
South Carolina Research Authority's investment affiliate, SC Launch Inc., has invested in Heron Farms Inc. The $250,000 investment will help the Charleston-based startup grow its vertical farming operations that require no naturally occurring freshwater. In 2022, Heron Farms became an SCRA Member Company and received a $50,000 Acceleration Grant. "The concept for Heron Farms began as a research question posed by founder Sam Norton while in graduate school; what if two of the 21st century's largest problems, rising seawater levels, and excess carbon dioxide, could be leveraged into next-generation sustainable agriculture? Through his exploration of this exciting possibility grew Heron Farms," said SC Launch Director Matt Bell. "The company was started with a passion for sustainable solutions and the science to support their work." "We focus on scalable sustainability aided by sophisticated technologies which include predictive software, cutting-edge automated data collection, and analysis methods to manage and monitor water salinity, carbon dioxide, growth cycles, and yield," said Heron Farms Founder and President Sam Norton Heron. "Having a partner in SCRA and SC Launch Inc. is supporting us to continue developing sustainable foods that are also healthy and delicious." "With a focus on sustainability, innovation, and consumer demand, the food tech industry is growing, and Heron Farms is part of its growth," said SCRA Executive Director Bob Quinn. "We are proud to be part of this emerging environmentally-friendly industry that is answering consumer demand." The process Understanding the unsustainability of freshwater consumption, Heron Farms uses seawater to grow its primary crop, sea beans. Freshwater is then captured from the sea bean through a process called evapotranspiration. This freshwater is then used to grow other crops, all without using any naturally occurring freshwater. In addition to being the starting point of this sustainable water cycle, sea beans are an alternative to natural salt that provide a vegan source of Omega-3, more magnesium than avocados, more protein than apples, and more iron than kale or bananas, among other benefits. For more information:
South Carolina Research Authority Investments
111 Investments
South Carolina Research Authority has made 111 investments. Their latest investment was in Soil Economy as part of their Grant - II on January 1, 2023.

South Carolina Research Authority Investments Activity

Date | Round | Company | Amount | New? | Co-Investors | Sources |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1/4/2023 | Grant - II | Soil Economy | $0.03M | Yes | 1 | |
1/4/2023 | Grant | Real Motors | $0.03M | Yes | 1 | |
11/22/2022 | Grant - III | ScopeStack | $0.25M | No | 1 | |
10/4/2022 | Grant | |||||
10/4/2022 | Grant |
Date | 1/4/2023 | 1/4/2023 | 11/22/2022 | 10/4/2022 | 10/4/2022 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Round | Grant - II | Grant | Grant - III | Grant | Grant |
Company | Soil Economy | Real Motors | ScopeStack | ||
Amount | $0.03M | $0.03M | $0.25M | ||
New? | Yes | Yes | No | ||
Co-Investors | |||||
Sources | 1 | 1 | 1 |
South Carolina Research Authority Portfolio Exits
5 Portfolio Exits
South Carolina Research Authority has 5 portfolio exits. Their latest portfolio exit was ENGAGE Talent on October 30, 2019.
Date | Exit | Companies | Valuation Valuations are submitted by companies, mined from state filings or news, provided by VentureSource, or based on a comparables valuation model. | Acquirer | Sources |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
10/30/2019 | Acquired | 3 | |||
Date | 10/30/2019 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Exit | Acquired | ||||
Companies | |||||
Valuation | |||||
Acquirer | |||||
Sources | 3 |
South Carolina Research Authority Partners & Customers
7 Partners and customers
South Carolina Research Authority has 7 strategic partners and customers. South Carolina Research Authority recently partnered with Shine Water on February 2, 2019.
Date | Type | Business Partner | Country | News Snippet | Sources |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2/16/2019 | Partner | United States | 1 | ||
8/17/2015 | Client | ||||
4/7/2014 | Client | ||||
3/17/2014 | Partner | ||||
12/19/2013 | Partner |
Date | 2/16/2019 | 8/17/2015 | 4/7/2014 | 3/17/2014 | 12/19/2013 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Type | Partner | Client | Client | Partner | Partner |
Business Partner | |||||
Country | United States | ||||
News Snippet | |||||
Sources | 1 |
South Carolina Research Authority Team
1 Team Member
South Carolina Research Authority has 1 team member, including current Chief Financial Officer, Julia Martin.
Name | Work History | Title | Status |
---|---|---|---|
Julia Martin | Chief Financial Officer | Current |
Name | Julia Martin |
---|---|
Work History | |
Title | Chief Financial Officer |
Status | Current |
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