Abstract
Latin American agribusiness faces a dual challenge: meeting growing food demand while advancing toward sustainability. The Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) offers major opportunities in this context. This article combines a narrative review of Big Data and Business Intelligence applications in the sector with the design of a viable Business Model Canvas for a Colombian startup that would provide data analytics and consulting services to small and medium-sized technified swine farms. The findings show that technology adoption can reduce production costs by up to 30%, increase agricultural yields by 10% to 27.3%, and save up to 40% of water. However, major barriers remain, including limited rural connectivity, high upfront costs, cultural resistance to adoption, and regulatory uncertainty.1,2 The proposed Canvas model, structured around nine blocks and three differentiated business lines, is designed to capture market opportunities and mitigate the specific risks of Colombian agribusiness. A favorable regulatory environment stands out, driven by Law 2069 of 2020, which enables regulatory sandboxes,3 R&D tax incentives, and institutional support from iNNpulsa Colombia, FINAGRO, and Banco Agrario. Together, these instruments create strong legal and public-financing conditions for technology-based ventures. From a financial perspective, the model projects an attractive average contribution margin of 80.6% and an operating profit of 42.3% in the first year. The startup also incorporates a strong sustainability component aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Keywords: Agribusiness 4.0, big data, business intelligence, canvas model, swine farms, tax incentives
