Mondelez Canada has invested in Area One Farms Fund V, a Canadian farmland investment strategy that partners with family farms looking to expand. The company says the money is meant to give farmers access to capital, strengthen agricultural supply chains and support regenerative practices suited to local conditions.

The investment was made through the global Mondelēz Sustainable Futures Impact Investment platform, with the impact-investment firm Sagana handling sourcing and due diligence. The amount was not disclosed.

Area One Farms provides growth capital to farmers who have the skills and opportunities to expand but face financial barriers. Farmers and the fund invest together as co-owners and share the farm's financial performance; farmers keep ownership interests and can increase their stake over time. The money can buy or improve land and pay for infrastructure, machinery, irrigation, drainage and precision-agriculture technology, and the fund also offers working capital, equipment funding and agronomic support for practices such as reduced tillage and cover cropping.

"Most farmers who want to grow are not short of skill or opportunity. They are short of growth equity," said Joelle Faulkner, Area One Farms' chief executive. François Ritchot of Sagana said financing the transition remains a big barrier to regenerative agriculture.

Area One Farms now manages more than C$800 million across more than 50 farm partnerships and 200,000 acres. Mondelez Canada president Naniss Gadel-Raab tied the announcement to the International Day of Women Farmers.

Photo: Parihav / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Source: Farms.com