Smart Yields lead founder Vincent Kimura was named “Ag Entrepreneur of the Year” at the 16th annual Hawaii Venture Capital Association HVCA award gala on Feb. 25.
The joint clean technology and agriculture technology category was sponsored by the Energy Excelerator, and Kimura’s award was jointly presented by Energy Excelerator operations lead Lori Makiya and HVCA President Meli James.
Kimura was also recognized as a finalist, alongside fellow entrepreneurs from local startups RealGreen Power and the Kunoa Cattle Company.
The HVCA awards program is designed to recognize “Hawaii’s most innovative entrepreneurs” and “the next generation of legacy builders.”
“Since 2000, HVCA has honored the entrepreneurs whose ingenuity, spirit of innovation and discipline have benefited us all,” the association explains. “They are visionaries. They are people of passion. And they have the ambition, drive and talent to take an idea and create a market where none existed before.”
Photo courtesy HVCA on Facebook.
