EnGeniousAg, a startup focused on advanced nitrogen sensing applications, has been acquired by CropX, a provider of farm management solutions. EnGeniousAg is a spinout from Iowa State University based on research funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. Its founders are Iowa State University professors Michael Castellano, Liang Dong and Patrick Schnable, and University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor James Schnable. According to a news release, EnGeniousAg’s nitrogen sensing technology provides farmers with tools to target nitrogen fertilizer application. The release said inefficient use of nitrogen fertilizer has significant financial effects for farmers and environmental effects like increased greenhouse gas emissions and nitrate runoff to waterways. CropX will integrate the technology into its platform to offer farmers and agribusinesses cost-savings and operational efficiencies. “Nitrogen management is a critical, unsolved challenge of modern farming. We are eager to provide a solution with such transformative potential,” CropX CEO Tomer Tzach said in a prepared statement. “In our global search for synergistic technologies in the nutrient management space, EnGeniousAg stood out with high-potential technology that is ideally suited to our mission.” To learn more about the acquisition, click here. To read a Business Record story on an Iowa State research effort led by Castellano to help farmers optimize their nitrogen fertilizer application, click here.