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Collaboratory for Open Software and Systems in Ag and Food
Transforming Food & Agriculture through Collective Impact
and Open Innovation
COSSAF is driving open, decentralized solutions that enhance interoperability, increase market opportunities, and accelerate mutual value creation across the global food and agriculture supply chain.
"When we build shared infrastructure instead of competing on foundational systems, everyone wins—growers gain better market access, technology providers reach broader adoption, and consumers benefit from more transparent, resilient food systems."
The Opportunity
Agriculture and food systems face complex, interconnected challenges that no single organization can solve alone. Supply chain inefficiencies, data silos, and incompatible systems create friction that limits innovation and reduces value for everyone—from growers to retailers to consumers. While individual companies excel within their domains, the lack of interoperable platforms and shared data standards prevents the industry from accessing data needed to realize its full potential. Traditional approaches often prioritize proprietary solutions over collaborative frameworks, making it difficult to achieve the accessibility and coordination of systems needed to address global food security, sustainability, and resilience challenges effectively and at scale.
Our Collaborative Solution
The convergence of open technologies, collaborative innovation, and human-centered design creates an unprecedented opportunity to raise the tide for all stakeholders in agriculture and food systems. By building interoperable platforms that respect data sovereignty while enabling seamless collaboration, we can unlock exponential value across the entire ecosystem. When growers, technology providers, retailers, and communities work together on shared infrastructure—rather than competing on foundational systems—everyone benefits from reduced friction, enhanced transparency, and accelerated innovation. This collaborative approach enables individual organizations to focus on their unique strengths while contributing to collective solutions that address industry-wide challenges, creating sustainable competitive advantages through cooperation rather than isolation.
Flipping the Innovation Model
In contrast to the standard technology incubator or accelerator, we flip the traditional technology development model by first convening communities of real world market participants to understand real needs and priorities. Instead of pushing technology solutions in search of problems, we facilitate pre-commercial collaboration-- or "collective impact". We connect stakeholders around shared challenges to enable the emergence of innovations to serve entire ecosystems rather than extracting value from them.
Market First Approach
We start with real shared needs of stakeholders, not technology looking for problems
Collective Collaboration
We flip tech development on its head through collective impact processes
Implementation Designed for Success
Ensuring those who create value retain and share in the benefits
Lighthouse Projects
Real-World Innovation Driving Industry Transformation
COSSAF manages a portfolio of projects. While COSSAF brings experience and best practices, we recognize the structure and cadence of each project must fit the needs and desires of its stakeholders. To that end, COSSAF designs each project to develop its own leadership teams and resourcing to meet its particular needs.
Our projects are not theoretical exercises—they are practical initiatives already making measurable impact across agriculture and food sectors. Each demonstrates our collaborative methodology in action, bringing together industry leaders, technology innovators, and communities to solve critical challenges while building the open infrastructure that enables entire ecosystems to thrive. From revolutionizing supply chain transparency to creating new models for regenerative agriculture advancement, these initiatives prove that when stakeholders unite around shared goals, breakthrough innovation becomes not just possible, but inevitable.
Scaling California's Regenerative Almond+ Practices (SCRAP+)
A pre-competitive collective impact initiative transforming California's $6 billion almond industry through collaborative adoption of regenerative practices. Engaging UC scientists, the Almond Board, growers, handlers, and buyers representing 33% of the 1.3 million acre market.
• Definition and standards for regenerative almonds • Outcome optimization and principle adherence frameworks • Data gathering and measurement sharing protocols • Two-way community of knowledge building with growers
Impact: Expanding to all tree nuts (pistachios, walnuts) in 2025, creating industry-wide transformation toward sustainable practices.
Sharing Platform for Ag Data & Equipment (SPADE)
Developing equitable digital solutions to unlock equipment sharing that transforms agricultural practices and enables greater entrepreneurialism. Building on California's $15 million budget for climate-resilient equipment sharing with open-source platform development.
• Equipment sharing solutions reducing adoption friction • Greater access to rural and inclusive food production • Open-source platform for shared equipment administration • Data sharing for use, payment, and program management
Impact: Enabling broader access to climate-resilient farming equipment while reducing barriers for small and beginning farmers.
Supply Chain of the Future (SCOTF)
Global industry movement launched in 2024 engaging the entire fresh produce ecosystem from growers to retailers across North America, EU, Asia, Middle East, and Australia. Four workstreams addressing critical supply chain inefficiencies through collaborative innovation.
• Shelf-life prediction reducing waste and optimizing pricing • Smart data escrow enabling selective information sharing • Dynamic incentives improving margins through performance • Harmonized standards ensuring interoperability and innovation
Impact: Summer 2025 pilots culminating in global showcase, demonstrating product-market fit and organizing new business collaborations.
Smart Asynchronous Data in Escrow (Sadie)
Revolutionary data-sharing solution leveraging open-source technologies from Purdue's OATS Center to enable trust and unlock multi-party coordination. Addresses agriculture's critical data sovereignty challenges through innovative escrow mechanisms.
• Standardized APIs with privacy and permission controls • Automatic sync and decentralized direct data flows • Open-source foundation built on Trellis and AGAPE technologies • Cross-project deployment across COSSAF lighthouse initiatives
Impact: Solving agriculture's fundamental data trust problem, enabling collaboration without compromising data ownership.
Our vision, Our team
COSSAF envisions a future where agricultural and food systems are transformed through the power of open, decentralized technologies. Unlike traditional approaches that concentrate value in the hands of a few, we're creating a system where communities are empowered and value is distributed equitably across the entire supply chain. This isn't just about implementing new technology – it's about fundamentally reimagining how value is created and shared in agriculture and food systems worldwide.
Our vision extends beyond simple digitization or incremental improvements. We're building a future where farmers, packers, shippers, and retailers can seamlessly collaborate while maintaining sovereignty over their data and fair compensation for their contributions. By focusing on outcomes and impact, we're ensuring that technology serves the real needs of communities rather than the other way around.
OUR PARTNERS
About COSSAF
COSSAF is a fiscally-sponsored non-profit project of the VINE Institute of Woodland, CA. It was established in 2024.
COSSAF flips the traditional technology development model on its head. Instead of pushing new technologies into markets, we start by understanding the real needs of stakeholders. We then facilitate pre-competitive collaboration that connects these market needs with appropriate technological solutions for mutual benefit.
Our approach ensures that every initiative we undertake is grounded in real-world requirements and delivers meaningful outcomes and social impact. By focusing on pre-competitive facilitation, we create an environment where true innovation can flourish apart from the pressure of market competition, allowing us to build sustainable business models that genuinely benefit all stakeholders.
CONTACT US
Inquiries
For any inquiries, questions or commendations, please email us using the contact form below.
Contact Us
Address
Collaboratory for Open Software & Systems in Ag & Food
a fiscally sponsored project of the VINE Institute
1100 Main St STE 300
Woodland, CA 95695-3522