Soil Capital raises €15 million to boost agricultural transition
Soil Capital is a company focused on promoting regenerative agriculture and reducing carbon emissions in the agricultural sector. Founded in 2013, it aims to transition one million hectares to more profitable and regenerative agriculture by 2025. It operates Europe's first certified carbon payment programme, known as Soil Capital Carbon, which allows farmers to measure and certify their carbon footprint annually.
This program helps farmers monetise their efforts to reduce carbon emissions and increase soil carbon storage by generating carbon certificates that can be sold on the carbon markets
Announcing the €15 million series B fundraise, Chuck de Liedekerke, CEO of Soil Capital, commented: “As a team with longstanding experience managing farms, we have seen firsthand the reality and consequences of climate change. These are already very real. That’s why we launched Soil Capital, with a vision to reshape the agricultural value chain.
“This new funding gives us the scope and capacity to take our impact to the next level, with an enhanced value proposition that will help to reimagine the relationship between society, land use, food systems and nature.”
This year, the organisation has paid more than 800 arable and mixed farmers in the UK, France and Belgium for environmentally friendly farming practices, up from 400 in 2022, with the first quarterly payment value of 2024 totalling £2.4 million as the company develops its presence across Europe.
The Series B funding will be used to scale up operations, meeting the rising demand for comprehensive indicators that include GHG emissions, soil health, water quality, biodiversity, and socio-economic factors. Significant improvements will be made to the data entry platform and agronomic support for farmers. It will also be used to continue the firm’s geographic expansion, extending its programme to more farmers in new regions of the world.
Dr. Alexander Domin, Partner at Trill Impact Advisory and Co-Head of Trill Impact Ventures, said: “We believe that Soil Capital is well positioned to champion the regenerative agriculture transition. With their large base of loyal farmers and high-integrity standards for certification, they help some of the world’s largest food corporates reduce their net emissions and strengthen their supply chain’s resilience to climate change.
“The investment is a testament to Trill Impact’s belief that business models addressing environmental challenges have great potential to become commercial winners. Together with our co-investors, we look forward to supporting the team’s ambition to enable farmers’ around the world in their transition.”
Peter De Decker, Investment Manager at SFPIM, added: “We share Soil Capital’s mission of supporting farmers in their transition to regenerative and sustainable agriculture. We are convinced that the business will enable change by unlocking a virtuous cycle. First of all, by placing the environment at the heart of its activities, but also by supporting farmers towards a future-proof farming model.
"We are very eager to collaborate with the team and the other investors on its ambitious plan.”
Tom Even Mortensen, Founder and CEO of Sandwater, said: “We’re deeply impressed by Soil Capital’s commitment to, and demonstrated success in, making regenerative agriculture the economically attractive choice for farmers, by engaging corporates to invest in the sustainability and resilience of their supply chains. We’re looking forward to the scaling journey ahead, together with the company and our co-investors.”
Charlotte Lafont, Investment Director at Ring Capital, added: “ Through its innovative programme, Soil Capital not only addresses the environmental problems of our food system, but also provides a viable and powerful solution to the social and economic challenges of the farming sector, thus combining comprehensive impact and scalable business model.”
