Farmland LP announces investment from Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund to support regenerative agriculture

Date:09-18-2024

Farmland LP, the largest fund manager in the U.S. focused on organic regenerative farmland, announced an investment from Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund in Farmland LP’s third value-add fund, Vital Farmland III LLC. Farmland LP will develop Soil Carbon Credits on its 18,500-acre farm portfolio and expand the market for regenerative soil carbon credits. This work will also include preparing the necessary protocols, a critical step towards increasing regenerative agriculture practices globally to sequester vast amounts of atmospheric CO2 as mineralized soil carbon.

″Farmland LP’s use of regenerative agriculture practices to ensure healthy soils, and therefore high-quality soil carbon credits, is a critical element of advancing nature-based carbon removal solutions,″ said Erika Basham, director of Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund. ″We’re excited to invest in their fund and work with them to create a more sustainable agriculture sector.

″This investment from Microsoft is a significant milestone for Farmland LP and the broader regenerative agriculture sector,″ said Craig Wichner, Founder and Managing Partner of Farmland LP. ″Microsoft’s investment in our Fund III is a powerful validation of our approach to regenerative agriculture, and this capital will allow us to acquire additional properties and increase our fund’s economic and environmental returns.″

Microsoft's investment aligns with its commitment to sustainability and innovation. Farmland LP will package carbon credits from diverse regenerative agriculture practices, which it expects to generate using Verra’s Verified Carbon Standard, the foremost carbon program in the world. This work is instrumental in demonstrating that regenerative practices provide economic benefits to farmers and thus accelerating the sequestration of carbon in soils on agricultural lands worldwide, driving the necessary work to prioritize the carbon credit market’s focus on regenerative agriculture, establish and standardize carbon credit protocols, and promote sustainable farming practices.

Farmland LP is currently raising capital for its $250M Vital Farmland III, LLC

About Farmland LP

Farmland LP is the largest fund manager in the U.S. focused on organic regenerative farmland. Founded in 2009, Farmland LP manages over 18,500 acres of high-quality farmland in Washington, Oregon, and California, with more than $300M AUM over three funds.