2025 RFSI Forum | Regenerative Food Systems Investment

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Regenerative Food Systems Investment Forum

Cultivating the Future of Agricultural Investment for Resilient Financial, Environmental & Social Returns

October 7-8, 2025 | Minneapolis

Thank you for joining us at the 2025 RFSI Forum!

Investments in the agricultural transition present one of the biggest opportunities of our time – with the potential to drive resilient financial, environmental and social outcomes at scale.

The global food and agriculture system is a leading driver of climate change, biodiversity loss, soil degradation, and human health crises. These deeply interconnected challenges stem from outdated, extractive models—and they present both urgent risks and unprecedented opportunities.

With aligned capital, we can flip the script.

Strategic investments across the agri-food value chain—from enabling technologies and regenerative land practices to supply chain infrastructure and emerging food brands—can help transform agriculture from a major problem into a powerful climate, environmental, health, and economic solution.

These investments not only build healthier and more resilient systems—they also deliver meaningful financial and impact returns.

At the 7th Annual RFSI Forum, we’re bringing together bold thinkers and capital allocators to explore how diverse forms of investment can drive this agricultural transition. You’ll leave equipped with cutting-edge insights, strategic pathways, and a powerful network to grow your work—and help build a more resilient future.

Join us in October and leverage the biggest community in regenerative agriculture and food investing to reach your goals!

About

Taking place October 7-8 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the 2025 RFSI Forum is THE gathering for learning the why, how, and where to invest capital in agriculture and food for financial and regenerative impact returns.

Whether you have been engaged in the regenerative space for decades, are ready to dig in to this burgeoning opportunity, or are just a little curious, this event offers unparalleled insights and networking opportunities. Here is a day-by-day agenda of all of the activities taking place this year:

Block

MONDAY, OCTOBER 6

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 8

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 9

ADD-ON EVENT

RFSI Bootcamp

12:30 - 4:30 p.m.

RFSI Forum - Day 1

9:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m.

RFSI Forum - Day 2

9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

ADD-ON EVENT

Regen Farm & Food Systems Tour

8:45 a.m. - 2:45 p.m.

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Who Should Attend?

Family offices, Foundations, Retail Investors
Public or Corporate Pension Funds, Endowments, Sovereign Wealth Funds
Fund Managers
Banks and Other Debt Providers
Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs) and other investment services
Insurance and Resilience Leaders
Farmers, Ranchers, Start-ups, Food Companies, and Service providers
Consultants, Project Coordinators, Researchers

Farmer Scholarships

Farmers and ranchers are an essential part of the regenerative food system and to the ecosystem of capital and solution-builders at the RFSI Forum. To better enable farmers to join the conversation we are offering a limited number of Farmer Scholarships to cover registration fees to the RFSI Forum on Oct. 7-8, plus registration fees for RFSI Bootcamp – designed specifically for farmers – on the afternoon of Oct. 6. The winners of the Farmer Scholarships were announced on August 18, 2025.

Donate to a Farmer Scholarship here.

We would like to say a very special thank you to The Nest who contributed to the farmer scholarships!

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Speakers

Paola is an innovation and systems transformation executive focused on sustainable development and food security solutions, as well as the frontiers and resilience of human systems. She currently leads the Food and Agriculture Portfolio for Pegasus Capital Advisors, leading portfolio investments for 2 large sustainable development funds focused on the Global South and accredited by the UN’s Green Climate Fund. Previously, she was the Chief Innovation Officer for Mars, Inc, preceded by a distinguished leadership career across multiple functions. Known as a systems thinker, managing complex networks, deploying multi-disciplinary change in large-scale programs, her current focus is in helping broad acceleration and scale up of Sustainable Development Goals solutions across multiple sectors and stakeholders.

Paola de AlmeidaPegasus Capital Advisors

Zara Anna Aspenson is a Senior Associate at Croatan Institute, where her work focuses on place-based agricultural solutions to rebuilding healthy ecosystems and communities. Before joining Croatan Institute, Aspenson worked as a program associate for Food System Policy at Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future, where she authored, “‘True’ Costs For Food System Reform: An Overview Of True Cost Accounting Literature And Initiatives” and co-authored, “Essential and in Crisis: A Review of the Public Health Threats Facing Farmworkers in the US.” Her work has also focused on agricultural research and development with ICARDA (CGIAR), as well as project management for community-driven food security initiatives in the highlands of Guatemala. Aspenson holds an M.P.H. from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a B.A. from American University. She is based in Baltimore, Maryland.

Zara AspensonCroatan Institute | Senior Associate

Samantha Bailey is the Radical Resource & Land Fund Director, proudly working in partnership with Midwest Farmers of Color Collective leadership to design and implement a collective, sustainable and values aligned investment practice. She works directly with farmers and farmer leaders as decision makers and potential investments for the fund, bringing experience as a community development lender to her role as a leader, educator and underwriter for the fund. Samantha serves on the Board of Shared Capital Cooperative, and holds a MBA & MPP from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities.

Samantha BaileyMidwest Farmers of Color Collective | Radical Resource & Land Fund Director

As Senior Relationship Manager at Iroquois Valley, Drew partners directly with organic farmers, ensuring they have the resources to grow their soil and business for long-term success. With over two decades of hands-on experience in agriculture and rural development, Drew has managed a diverse vegetable and livestock operation, spearheaded initiatives to restore farmland access, and played a pivotal role in revitalizing regional food systems by rebuilding agriculture’s missing middle. His driving passion is to empower the next generation of bold farmers and food system leaders, ensuring every farmer has the opportunity to succeed.

Drew BlankenbakerIroquois Valley | Senior Relationship Manager

David Bennell is a leading Sustainability professional with over 25 years of experience with corporations and investors, as well as with many of the world’s top NGOs and philanthropic foundations. He’s a managing director the $28 billion Transformational Investing in Food Systems Initiative and an investor in start-ups focused on digital climate solutions and bioscience. He worked in the corporate sector for three prominent corporations leading R&D, leadership development and sustainability programs and held a 5-year appointment at MIT as adjunct faculty in the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics. David helped co-found the for-profit social enterprise company CottonConnect (a 2012 finalist for World’s Most Ethical Company), helped launch a multimillion-dollar USA impact investing fund focused on rural economic development, and co-created and led the global apparel industry standards non-profit Textile Exchange. David wrote and presents one of the world’s most watched sustainability education courses viewable on Linked In Learning (titled Sustainability Strategies) named the #1 global course for impact investors. He serves on the board at Wolfe’s Neck Center, home of the global agriculture technology platform OpenTEAM, and is a board director at American Forests, the USA’s oldest forest conservation organization founded in 1876.

David BennellTransformational Investing in Food Systems (TIFS) | Managing Director

Renee is Managing Partner of Bonterra Partners, an impact investment advisory firm she founded in 2010. Bonterra helps investors deploy capital into regenerative agriculture and forestry investments that generate positive returns for investors, nature and local communities. She has led and evaluated numerous investments in both developed and emerging markets on behalf of investment firms, family offices, corporates and foundations, helping some of these clients become today's most successful leaders in natural capital investing. Renee was formerly Senior Vice President, Real Assets at New Island Capital, where she focused on investments in sustainable and regenerative agriculture and forestry in the Americas and the rest of the world. Previously, she was a private equity executive at RIT Capital Partners PLC and Pantheon Ventures. Renee received a BS in Computer Science and an MS in Management of Science & Engineering from Stanford University.

Renee CheungBonterra Partners | Managing Partner

David Cooper partners with TIFS to lead strategic finance and systems-level investment solutions for regenerative agriculture. Currently, he is developing two major funds exceeding $ 100 M: DiversiFund, which targets regenerative agriculture transitions, and Solar Repower Fund, addressing aging solar infrastructure on agricultural properties located in the California Central Valley. His flagship projects include the Burroughs Family Farms Solar Repower in Denair, California, which preserves farmers' initial investments while enhancing energy independence, and Green Acres Milling, a $60 million farmer-owned oat processing facility in Albert Lea, Minnesota. Working with partners, he creates innovative financing mechanisms that leverage Investment Tax Credits, USDA backing, and blended capital structures. With 20 years at the intersection of finance, entrepreneurship, and regenerative agriculture, Cooper specializes in TIFS "Lighthouse" initiatives - demonstration projects that show how innovative financing can unlock capital at scale. His current work focuses on creating durable economic models that support food system entrepreneurs through comprehensive due diligence, stakeholder coordination, and strategic financial structuring across climate, agriculture, and food systems transformation.

David CooperDAF Capital Partners

Timothy Childs is the Founder and co-CEO of Nutri8, a pioneering food technology company that addresses global food waste and nutrition insecurity through its proprietary preservation systems. Recognized as an early pioneer bridging Silicon Valley innovation with food manufacturing, Timothy launched the food-tech category in 2003, transitioning from NASA technology to chocolate production. His groundbreaking work at TCHO Chocolate revolutionized the cacao industry with innovations such as remote fermentation monitoring, iPhone-based factory control, AR/VR visualization, and portable flavor labs. Through TCHOSource, a flavor-driven supply chain model implemented with USAID, he significantly improved product quality and livelihoods across South America and Africa. Timothy previously developed machine vision systems for NASA’s Space Shuttle, ran SIGGRAPH’s influential Web3D Roundup, and co-founded early virtual reality ventures. His innovative methods earned awards and features in major media outlets like The Economist, The New York Times, CNBC and MIT Technology Review. A certified supertaster, Timothy continues to innovate at the intersection of food technology and sustainability as co-founder of Nourish, a nonprofit that advances regenerative agriculture research.

Timothy ChildsNutri8 | Founder and co-CEO

Anthony Corsaro is an entrepreneur, investor, and regenerative agriculture evangelist whose mission is to help heal our people and planet through ventures that inspire the production and consumption of healthy, nutrient-dense foods. Anthony is the Managing Director at Outlaw Ventures: a family office backing the rebels, radicals, and revolutionaries building the better food system of tomorrow. Outlaw Ventures is in the process of raising a venture capital fund to invest in early-stage regenerative consumer brands. Anthony is also the Creator and Co-Host of The ReGen Brands Podcast: a podcast about the consumer brands supporting regenerative agriculture and how they’re changing the world. He is also a Co-Founder of Regen Coalition: a non-profit trade association of regenerative CPG brands working to solve the biggest problems facing regenerative brands in a collective and collaborative fashion. Anthony’s family has been deeply involved in the food system for almost 100 years since his orphaned grandfather started selling fresh produce in the early 1930s. That business grew into one of the leading regional fresh produce distributors in the country and today serves 2,500+ retail customers in 20 states. Anthony helped steward the most recent growth phase of the company as a third-generation contributor and executive leader in the business. His professional background in food distribution and personal health journey led him to his work in building regenerative food systems.

Anthony CorsaroReGen Brands

Colin holds a unique set of roles advancing regenerative agriculture in the Upper Midwest. For the last six years, he has led the Commercialization, Adoption, and Scaling Team of the University of Minnesota Forever Green Initiative. Forever Green is a globally-leading innovation platform developing new perennial and winter annual crops that can enable diversified 'continuous living cover' agriculture at scale. Since 2023, Colin has been cultivating entrepreneurial pathways in this field by co-founding Overstory Ventures, a venture studio building waves of steward-owned regenerative agriculture ventures, with first two projects Midwest Hazelnuts and Manto Foods. He holds Masters in Applied Economics (MS) and Food and Energy Policy (MPP) from the University of Minnesota and lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Colin CuretonUniversity of Minnesota Forever Green Initiative & Co-Founder Overstory Ventures

Julie Davenson is the Managing Director (acting) for Green America’s Soil & Climate Initiative, a holistic farm-to-shelf regenerative agriculture program with options for third-party verification. SCI’s offers an ecosystem of services for food companies, foundations and investors who are looking to funding regenerative transition while tracking science-based outcomes on the ground. SCI’s Regenerative Transition Services supports farmers, investors, foundations and food companies to accelerate and scale the transition to regenerative agriculture. With over 250,000 acres already in transition, across 23 states, and

Julie DavensonSoil & Climate Initiative | Farm Finance Specialist

Zach Ducheneaux is a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. He was the 3rd generation to manage the family beef cattle and Quarter Horse ranch. His professional career started as a farm advocate for the Intertribal Agriculture Council in the 90's and after a term on his Tribal Council, he continued to ranch and work with the Intertribal Agriculture Council, focusing on finance and producer economics. Ducheneaux served as your Farm Service Agency Administrator for the Biden Administration, focusing on finance, parity for livestock safety net programs, equity, and conservation. His work on finance reform continues through a company he created to demonstrate a better way to empower producers...5th C. Finance for producers should be an investment for the long term if we want long term results. Ag is profitable, Ag finance, when done to meet the needs of the producer is not risky. Paying for the use of money isn't the problem, paying back the money too fast is.

Zach DucheneauxDX LLC & former Farm Service Agency Administrator

Ingrid Dyott is a recognized leader in sustainable investing, with over 25 years of experience at Neuberger Berman, a global investment management firm headquartered in New York City. As Senior Portfolio Manager and co-head of the Sustainable Equity team, she helped shape the firm’s ESG strategy and built a distinguished franchise focused on long-term value creation through responsible investing. Throughout her career, Ingrid has presented at industry conferences and appearing in media to share insights on market trends, sustainability, and investment strategy. Her expertise spans both public and private markets, with a consistent focus on aligning financial performance with positive societal impact. Ingrid currently serves as an independent trustee for the fund complex at Impax Asset Management, a pioneer in sustainable investment solutions. She is also a board member of Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT, a SEC-registered private investment company that finances organic farmland to support regenerative agriculture. In the nonprofit sector, she chairs the board of Arbor Rising, which funds and mentors early-stage social entrepreneurs, and serves on the board of the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, supporting initiatives that improve lives across New York City. In academia, Ingrid is a faculty advisor and adjunct professor at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) and teaches in the Master of Finance Program at Baruch College’s Zicklin School of Business. She holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA from Bowdoin College.

Ingrid DyottRecently retired from Neuberger Berman | Sustainable Investing

Seanicaa Edwards HerronFreedmen Heirs Foundation | President and CEO

Abianne FallaCatSpring Yaupon | Founder

Houda FerradjiImpactAssets Capital Partners | Principal

Matthew Fitzgerald is a second-generation organic grain farmer and founder of FarmFlow. He and his family manage 2,500 acres of certified organic crops in Minnesota under Fitzgerald Organics. FarmFlow is an AI-enhanced platform built from Matthew’s on-farm experience, designed to streamline farm management, labor training, and compliance, with a focus on organic and regenerative practices.

Matthew FitzgeraldFitzgerald Organics | Farmer • FarmFlow | Founder

Hallie FoxThe Nest | Senior Associate

Growing up surrounded by farmland in southern Minnesota, Sarah has focused her career at the intersection of agrifood systems and human health. For the past five years, Sarah led United States operations for Food Systems for the Future focused on utilizing innovative finance and wraparound services to improve access to nutrient dense foods in low income and low access communities across the country. In this role, Sarah worked under Ambassador Ertharin Cousin to engage directly with producers, entrepreneurs, funders, and communities to take a holistic approach to equitable and sustainable agrifood systems. Prior to her time at Food Systems for the Future, Sarah spent years working in public health and public policy. As Senator Amy Klobuchar’s Outreach Director, Sarah traveled the state of Minnesota to engage with communities, organizations, and industries to understand and address the most impactful issues facing constituents. Sarah also brings years of private sector consulting experience with some of the midwest's largest companies. Sarah holds a MSc in International Development from the London School of Economics and a BA in Political Science from DePaul University.

Sarah FranzHealing Soils Foundation | Executive Director

Vincent Gauthier is a senior manager for climate-smart agriculture at Environmental Defense Fund and a thought leader on agriculture finance solutions that help farmers and ranchers adapt to a changing climate. Vincent collaborates directly with farmers, ranchers, and agriculture lenders to develop financing solutions that help fund and derisk the adoption of conservation practices for farmers. He has advanced actionable financial data on climate-smart agriculture practices and is bringing climate risk assessment and management to the agriculture finance sector. He values spending time with farmers and ranchers to understand the climate and weather challenges they face. Vincent is trained in economics and holds a masters in environmental management from Duke University. He was named to the GreenBiz 30 under 30 list in 2024.

Vincent GauthierEnvironmental Defense Fund | Senior Manager, Climate-Smart Agriculture

Kathryn Gilje (Kat) is a strategist in regenerative food and agricultural systems, land justice, and mission-aligned investing, with 25+ years of experience across philanthropy, movement building, and impact finance. As Managing Director at Just Futures Impact, she advances capital strategies under the leadership of visionary partners like the Midwest Farmers of Color Collective and the Just Transitions Integrated Capital Fund. Formerly Executive Director of Ceres Trust, Kat led a full asset transfer to grassroots movements, farmers, and land stewards. Her work bridges organizing, somatics, and finance to advance a just transition to regenerative economies.

Kathryn GiljeJust Futures Impact | Managing Director

Bert is the founder of Impact Ag Partners whose expertise has been instrumental in the strategic approach the asset management company has taken to real asset investing in ag and creating value for investment partners. Bert has turned his 25 years of agribusiness experience towards asset management to meet the growing demand from investors who wish to invest in Ag as a profitable impact investment and NbS in addressing climate change. IAP has over $600m of AUM across Australia & North America under separate managed accounts. These assets have produced 2% increase in soil carbon sequestration and realized $1 million in soil carbon sales along with other natural capital co-benefits.

Bert GloverImpact Ag Partners | Founder & CEO

Dominick leads investment and portfolio management activities for Dirt Capital Partners. He has worked extensively in land-based investing, including for seven years at BioCarbon Group, a global private-equity impact investment firm backed by institutional investors. Previously he worked at Working Lands Investment Partners, a private-equity real asset investment firm specializing in complex projects with value derived from agriculture, timber, and ecosystem services; the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Environmental Markets; and was a lecturer in Forest and Ecosystem Finance at the Yale School of the Environment. Dominick serves on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Green Bank and the CT Department of Agriculture Diversity Equity and Inclusion Working Group. In addition, he and his wife operate a small diversified organic farm in Connecticut. He holds an MBA, an M.E.M. and BA with distinction from Yale University.

Dominick GrantDirt Capital Partners

Stephen is the founder of Grounded Capital where he serves as the CEO and Chief Investment Officer, working with the team to manage holdings in the portfolio and collaborate with aligned partners to build a more regenerative food system. He has pursued strategies that contemplate diverse stakeholders and operations, striving to achieve outcomes greater than any individual investment through a systems-based approach. Stephen has spent more than two decades studying our food system and investing private capital in ways that support more regenerative agricultural practices, the production of healthy food at scale, and connect people to the source of their food. His work has included land and conservation, farming, ranching, forestry, processing, consumer products, and retail. During the first part of his career, Stephen invested across a broad range of assets on behalf of family offices and their related entities. He serves as a director for Traditional Medicinals, Lotus Foods, and Straus Family Creamery. Stephen graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a degree in Agribusiness. When he isn’t focused on our food system and Grounded Capital, you can find him skiing or hiking in the mountains, playing tennis, or traveling with his family.

Stephen HohenriederGrounded Capital | CEO & Founder

Zoe is a co-founder and the Executive Director of the Midwest Farmers of Color Collective and has over 20 years' experience organizing with grassroots organizations on the East Coast and Midwest, building organizations to influence decision-making in food, farming and environmental related policy. She is a founding member-owner of Rootsprings Farm & Retreat Cooperative in Annandale, MN, which produces fruit and offers healing respite for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ people and organizations. Zoe serves on the Union of Concerned Scientists Transformational Farm Bill Advisory Committee, with other partner organizations fighting for a just transition of our food and agricultural systems. Zoe received her B.S. in Urban & Regional Planning from Cornell University in 2001 and an M.S. from Southern New Hampshire University in Community Economic Development in 2007.

Zoe HollomonMidwest Farmers of Color Collective | Co-founder & Executive Director

Donna serves as Managing Director, Investor Relations at Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT, PBC. Iroquois Valley provides financing to organic, regenerative farmers through long-term leases and mortgages. Donna has over 15 years of experience in the investment management industry, serving in various business development and investor relations positions. Prior to working in finance, she practiced law, specializing in ERISA matters. Donna earned a Bachelor of Science in accounting from Syracuse University, a Juris Doctorate from Syracuse University, College of Law, and a Master of Law in Taxation from New York University.

Donna HolmesIroquois Valley Farmland REIT, PBC | Managing Director, Investor Relations

Ali is a co-founder and Managing Director at Sextant Capital, a private capital advisory group, primarily focused on direct and fund investments in sustainable sectors. She combines her unique experiences as a former sustainability investor, Fortune 500 operator, and investment advisor to provide growth and capital strategy to companies as well as private asset managers and allocators. Previously at PJT Partners and Park Hill, Ali advised alternative asset managers on fund formation and impact capital raising. Ali also previously directed Sustainability and ESG for TPG where she developed an integrated, value-centric ESG approach across the investment cycle. During her time, she led ESG-related business building with over 200 portfolio companies, many from pre-investment to successful exit. Ali spent her early career as an operator, leading sustainability strategies and advising companies like Apple, McDonalds, Bank of America, Dupont, and The Gates Foundation.

Ali HumphreySextant Capital | Co-founder and Managing Director

Myriah Johnson holds a B.S. in ag economics from Oklahoma State University, a M.S. in ag economics and a Ph.D. in animal science from Texas A&M University. She grew up on a cattle, wheat and soybean farm in Oklahoma and remains involved today. Myriah joined Farm Credit Services of America in 2022 as Vice President, Corporate Sustainability to start their sustainability program. As such, she launched work across multiple internal business units and conducted innovative sustainable agricultural finance research. Further, as one of the early Farm Credit Associations involved in this area, she has influenced the philosophy of the Farm Credit System on the topic. In May 2024 Myriah joined the Farm Credit System’s Sustainability workgroup. Myriah previously held positions at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the Noble Research Institute where she became involved with the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (USRSB), a multi-stakeholder initiative developed to advance, support, and communicate continuous improvement in sustainability of the U.S. beef value chain.

Myriah JohnsonFarm Credit Services of America | Vice President Corporate Sustainability

As RSF’s Vice President of Lending Business Development, Michael Jones manages RSF’s business development, oversees the relationship management team, and works with strategic lending partners. He is a graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta and attended graduate school at NYU. Michael began his banking career in New York with Wells Fargo in a real estate structured finance group and later with the corporate banking group. He then shifted to Wells Fargo’s middle market banking group in Oakland. After Wells Fargo, Michael worked at Mechanic’s Bank where he was able to support local organizations and non-profits. Prior to joining RSF, Michael worked at New Resource Bank (now Amalgamated Bank), a socially and environmentally focused lender where he supported organizations in various industries, and in recent years financed projects in the renewal energy space. Michael is a native Californian, born and raised in the Bay Area. He currently lives in the East Bay with his wife and son, and enjoys reading biographies.

Michael JonesRSF | Vice President of Lending Business Development

Colleen Kavanagh, has spent her career in federal and state food policy and inside the food industry with a mission to improve wellness in our country. She wrote parts of the National School Lunch Act and the Child Nutrition Act as a congressional staffer and continued working to improve child nutrition working in and founding nonprofits. She left policy work to found ZEGO, a gluten-free food company, and pioneered its Purity Verification system, which gives consumers on-pack, instant access to test results for pesticides, heavy metals, and gluten. As of this May, she’s also CEO of the Collaborative Integrated Value Chain, a Montana-based grain processing hub that helps farmers and brands bring organic and regenerative grains to market at prices consumers can afford.

Colleen KavanaughZEGO | Founder

Brad is a Principal of SLM Partners and leads all business activities for North America. He is focused on managing and growing organic and regenerative farmland investment strategies in the US. Brad passionately works to enhance the tools that allow ecological and economical land management practices to improve and expand. Prior to joining SLM Partners, Brad spent 9 years with the Harvard University endowment, helping to manage its US$4 billion agricultural and timberland investment portfolio. In his roles at Harvard, Brad had direct responsibility for a large portfolio of agriculture investments in the US, Australia, and New Zealand and sat on the boards of companies globally. Brad was an integral team member leading the restructuring of the portfolio following management changes in 2015 and helped to rebuild a 20+ person team dedicated to agriculture.

Brad KeithSLM Partners | Principal

John Kempf is the founder of Advancing Eco Agriculture, a regenerative agronomy consulting company. John is the host of the Regenerative Agriculture podcast, and is known for developing crop nutrition management systems that increase yields and profitability while reducing the need for fertilizers and pesticides.

John KempfAdvancing Eco Agriculture | Founder

Emily Lafferty is passionate about farmers & connecting agronomic and gastronomic choices to human health. She is the Director of Supply Chain at Seven Sundays where she drives projects in support of the company's growth and mission of making cereals that improve the health of people & the planet. She has ten years of experience driving CPG product innovation and commercialization, leading value chain creation, rallying stakeholder collaboration, and accelerating impact measurements & messaging.

Emily LaffertySeven Sundays | Director of Supply Chain

Andy loves to get to know his clients in-depth and provide critical consulting in areas key to farm financial and organizational health. Andy has expertise in strategic farm business and marketing planning, farm financial statements and projections, agricultural credit and loan structure, loan guarantees and credit enhancements, farm succession and intergenerational transition, and grantsmanship. Before joining FFI, Andy worked as an Agriculture and Commercial Loan Officer at German American State Bank, where he had the opportunity to provide commercial credit to scores of local farmers and family businesses in northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin. Andy worked with numerous conventional dairy and row crop farmers but also placed special emphasis on building his loan portfolio with more unconventional farmers pursuing alternative enterprises for niche markets, ranging from grass-fed meats to farmstead cheese to fresh fruits and vegetables. Prior to his time at the bank, Andy spent a decade working in Extension for Iowa State University and the University of Illinois, focusing his educational programming on the business and marketing side of small farms, local foods, and sustainable agriculture. He worked with beginning farmers in the startup phase, on through to long-established farmers looking to transition the family farm business to the next generation. Concurrently, Andy also held the role of state coordinator for North Central SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education), where he gained experience in grantsmanship and professional development for outreach educators in sustainable ag. Andy formed his work ethic and his land ethic growing up on a dairy farm in northernmost Illinois. He learned about farming as a way to make both a living and a lifestyle and has strong memories of milking Holsteins in a stanchion barn, putting up hay and straw in small square bales, and tearing out old barbed wire fence. Andy returned to his roots in late 2013, relocating his young family to the acreage where his grandparents retired, just over the hill from the home farm. Andy and his wife grew their backyard chicken hobby into a free-range egg business, now selling brown eggs to local retail stores, restaurants, and farmers markets. Outside of business hours, you can find Andy washing and packing eggs, building or fixing something on the farm, or volunteering his time with one of several area non-profits working in sustainable and alternative agriculture. Andy and his wife also have three school-age daughters.

Andy LarsonFood Finance Institute | Farm Program Manager

Chris leads the Firm’s Investment Committee and investor relations functions, in addition to deal sourcing and underwriting. Chris is an investor and executive who has been managing impact investing portfolios since 2010, previously serving as Chief Investment Officer and CEO of New Island Capital Management. At New Island, Chris led a 28-person team to create a multi-asset-class, institutional-scale, 100% impact portfolio, and pioneered strategies in real assets and commercial real estate. Earlier, Chris held investment research positions at Cambridge Associates and Imprint Capital. He was previously the Executive Director of the Mattole Restoration Council, a community-based conservation effort in rural northwestern California. Chris holds an MBA from the Yale School of Management and a BS from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University. Chris and his family live on a small farm in Marin County, California where they grow organic fruit and vegetables.

Chris LarsonAlder Point Capital | CIO & Managing Director

Beth Leonard is the CFO of 4P Foods, a regional distributor of fresh, local food based in Warrenton, VA. 4P Foods connects more than 200 food producers and 15 cooperatives and food hubs with institutional demand - K-12 schools, universities, health care providers, and retailers - across the Mid-Atlantic. To finance 4P's growth, Beth has been instrumental in building out a blended capital stack that includes philanthropic and governmental grants, equity, and a wide range of debt vehicles. She is also an impact investor in regenerative food businesses, so she has sat on both sides of the fundraising table. Beth brings to her work decades of experience in international finance, banking, and insurance as well as a global perspective having sailed around the world (twice) with her husband and lived in more than 35 countries. She considers herself a recovering capitalist pioneering alternative models that use market forces to shape a resilient, profitable, sustainable business; turn extraction into regeneration; and share value creation with all who have contributed to it.

Beth Leonard4P Foods | CFO

Mark Lewis is a Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Trailhead Capital, an early stage venture capital firm actively investing in regenerative food and agriculture technology companies. Mark manages Trailhead's investments in HowGood, EarthSense, Ascribe Bioscience, Trace Genomics, EarthShot Labs, Omeat, Funga, Mad Capital, Eion, Progenco, Avalo, and TerraBlaster. He previously managed Lewis Family Farm, a 354 acre certified organic farming operation near Hoyt, CO. Prior to his adventures in regenerative agriculture, Mark worked and invested in the renewable energy sector at GSSG Solar, and before that he grew up in the oil and gas business and has been actively sourcing and managing private investments for his family office for 20 years. He has served on the non-profit boards of Mad Agriculture, Revision, and Etown. He has a BA in Economics from the University of San Diego and an MBA from the University of Colorado. Mark lives with his wife and two young daughters in Denver.

Mark LewisTrailhead Capital | Co-Founder & Managing Partner

Lindsey Lusher Shute is the co-founder and CEO of GrownBy, a farmer-owned agricultural tech company. GrownBy aims to make local food accessible to everyone and help small farmers succeed. It provides an online marketplace for farmers, manages farm sales across retail and wholesale channels, and now offers point-of-sale technology for farmers markets. It is the only software currently accepting SNAP Online for farms. Before launching Farm Generations, Lindsey co-founded the National Young Farmers Coalition and served as its executive director for ten years. Her family's farm, Hearty Roots Community Farm, grows USDA-certified organic produce for their CSA delivering to New York City and the Hudson Valley. Lindsey was recognized as a “Champion of Change” by President Barack Obama, received Glynwood’s “Harvest Award,” and was named an “American Food Hero” by Eating Well magazine. GrownBy was the 2025 recipient of the Co-op Innovation Award from Capital Impact Partners and won the 2023 Small Farm Innovation Award from the California Alliance with Family Farmers.

Lindsey Lusher ShuteGrownBy | Co-founder and CEO

$Nima Majd is the Co-founder and CEO of Reveal, a diagnostic innovation platform transforming how food quality is measured, proven, and protected. Reveal is building the most advanced testing platform for food contaminants, starting with antibiotics. Powered by proprietary antibody technology, Reveal's tests will deliver lab-quality results in minutes and at a fraction of the cost. Our in-field tests will enable real-time authentication and accountability, allowing regulators to scale testing with confidence and empowering brands to differentiate and prove their promises. Before co-founding Reveal, Nima spent over a decade at Apple, leading strategic partnerships and go-to-market efforts across the U.S. and Latin America with companies such as Walmart, Amazon, Costco, and Target. He also serves on the MLK Community Hospital Dream Council, a select circle of leaders advancing health and wellness in South Los Angeles. Outside of work, Nima is the proud father of two young children and, every summer, can be found picking blueberries on his wife’s family farm in Leyden, MA — though mostly eating more than he picks.$ Nima MajdReveal | Co-founder and CEO

Lauren Manning, Esq., LL.M., is an attorney, law professor, and farmer. Before her current role, Lauren was a venture capital investor with food and ag-focused VC firm AgFunder. Lauren began with AgFunder in 2015 as part of AgFunderNews media and research team reporting on issues involving finance, agriculture, climate change, and more. From 2019 to 2021, Lauren supported the Sacred Cow documentary and book project discussing the nutritional, environmental, and ethical case for (better) meat production. At the University of Arkansas, Lauren serves as an adjunct law professor across multiple departments teaching courses on farm animal welfare, food safety, farm succession planning, agricultural cooperatives and local food systems, and more. Lauren is a partner in Northwest Arkansas-based Ozark Pasture Beef, a direct-to-consumer grass-finished and pasture-based livestock partnership selling beef and lamb.

Lauren ManningFood System 6 | Managing Director

Gerardo Martinez is a Naval Academy graduate and former Marine Corps Officer. After his service, inspired by a community farm he visited in Cameroon, Gerardo returned to the U.S. with a mission to recreate that spirit. He purchased a rundown property in Edgewater, Maryland, and transformed it into Wild Kid Acres, a thriving regenerative farm. Gerardo is also the founder of the Maryland International Agriculture Conference, which promotes global collaboration on food accessibility and climate awareness. He is also the founder of the Global Alliance for Latinos in Agriculture (GALA) am advocacy organization for Latino growers. Now he is set on building Wild Kid Acres into the first farming franchise! In his spare time, he enjoys rock climbing, competing in the Mexican Rodeo (Charreada), and spending time with his wife and two young children.

Gerardo MartinezFarmer | Wild Kid Acres

Noah MunroGood Roots | Founder and Co-CEO

Lolita D. Nunn is a champion for social, racial, and environmental systems change, bringing more than 25 years of progressive experience across the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. She began her career in the banking industry, where she spent 14 years building expertise in finance, management, and investment banking. Driven by a passion for philanthropy, she transitioned to the nonprofit sector, taking on leadership roles with organizations such as the American Red Cross and the American Cancer Society, where she advocated for health and humanitarian initiatives while leading major fundraising efforts. Deeply committed to building resilient communities, Lolita has aligned her expertise with the food sovereignty movement. She is a founding coalition member of the Washtenaw Black Farmers Fund, where she has led efforts to provide resources to local urban farmers. In her current role as Director of Investor Relations at Potlikker Capital, she designs and manages fund development strategies, engaging mission-aligned investors and foundations to build resilient BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) farming communities locally and nationally. In addition to her professional leadership, Lolita also contributes her expertise through board and advisory roles, including the Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Funders (SAFSF) Board of Directors, the Transformational Investing in Food Systems (TIFS) Advisory Committee, and advisory committees for Rende Progress Capital and Nubian Capital Providers. Lolita holds an MBA with a concentration in Finance and a BBA in Business Management from Eastern Michigan University

Lolita NunnPotlikker Capital | Director of Program and Investor Relations

Laura Ortiz Montemayor is a living-systems thinker and mompreneur, founder of SVX México, passionate about Regenerative Culture, biodiversity, and an advocate for transformative Impact Investing. Her life mission is to ensure that capital serves life instead of governing it and she works shifting investment paradigms. During the past years, Laura’s work has focused on building the investment case for biodiversity regeneration, climate finance and Latin America through Investment advice and education. She is also a board member of the Mexican National Advisory Board from the GSG (AII MX) a volunteer for ALTERNARE A.C., one of the founding members of the ASEM (Mexican Association of Entrepreneurs). Both Laura and her business partner Stevie are currently launching their first fund: Regenera Ventures to invest in the regenerative transition for rural Mexico with a gender lens and a landscape approach. She has taught impact investing, climate finance and regenerative economy to over 3,000 Latin American investors and spoken about the subject in multiple countries. Before founding SVX, she previously worked for over 8 years in wealth and asset management in BBVA and Citi Banamex. Laura has a degree in International Business from ITESM (Tec de Monterrey) and has additional certifications on Impact Investment from Oxford University, Regenerative Entrepreneurship by UCI, Venture Capital and Private Equity Seminar of RiskMathics, Investment Management training by ANDE and Behavioral Economics by NYU. Laura is an angel investor in Desplastifícate, and a micro investor through collective finance in 2 more social and environmental impact companies in Mexico.

Laura Ortiz MontemayorFounder | SVX México

Joy is the Senior Director of Corporate Relations and Engagement at American Farmland Trust (AFT), where she leads efforts to build strategic partnerships that advance sustainable agriculture and protect our nation’s farmland. With over 25 years of experience in agribusiness, media, and strategic partnerships, she cultivates impactful collaborations with corporations aligned with AFT’s mission. Before joining AFT, she served as Chief Operating Officer at HighQuest Partners, where she created and produced industry-leading conferences such as the Women in Agribusiness Summit and the Organic & Non-GMO Forum. Her career also includes several national and regional awards, including 2 Emmy nominations, for television production.

Joy O’ShaughnessyAmerican Farmland Trust | Senior Director of Corporate Relations and Engagement

Tina is a systems leader, strategist and futurist within the Organic and Regenerative Agriculture movements in the United States. Her background spans two decades within the world’s largest food companies and includes leading transformational shifts in food and agriculture systems via supply and operations as it relates to on-farm profitability, sustainability, regenerative agriculture financing, consumer activism related to clean label and organics, plus unfolding food as medicine and nutrient dense systems. Tina holds multiple board and advisory positions across the regenerative agriculture movement. From 2022 to 2024 Tina co-founded and led the Nutrient Density Alliance, an effort to link consumer demand to regenerative agriculture and shore up the demand systems needed to support safe framer transition into regenerative systems. From 2018-2022 Tina worked for Danone North America where she was the Senior Director of Food & Agriculture Impact and developed the first stacked financing program within the CPG regenerative movement, comprised of millions of dollars in grant, philanthropic, and impact investing capital directly available to key farming partners. Tina worked at Kellogg Company from 2001-2018 on food systems transformation and sustainability for some of the world’s largest organic brands. She walks the talk through regeneration of the land on her own family farm in Michigan where Tina and her family raise heritage, pastured animals for nutrient dense outcomes, to regenerate their land, and to provide a deeper understanding as it relates to scaling regional regenerative food systems.

Tina OwensTransformational Investing in Food Systems | Regenerative Agriculture Systems

Kathleen has been in the philanthropic and impact investing world for more than two decades. She founded and led Conscious Capital, an impact investment and philanthropic advisory firm and led that for ten years before moving into intensive, organizational and issue-specific work. She has helped raise over $500MM over the course of her career. Her work has centered on aligning the use of capital with an individual’s or organization’s highest values and the belief that transformational financial and social impact occur only when qualitative and quantitative measures are focused on in equal measure. At Regenerative Social Finance, she leads the organization’s efforts to secure values-aligned capital to support entrepreneurs working in regenerative agriculture, climate and energy, education and community impact. She has a master's degree in public policy from Tufts University and a BA from Mount Holyoke College. She is a Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy®.

Kathleen PaylorRSF Social Finance | Vice President, Impact Investing and Philanthropy

$Ryan Pintado-Vertner is a systems thinker, marketing veteran and collaboration catalyst with two decades of experience guiding the strategy, marketing, innovation and ESG choices of Fortune-level companies, venture-backed enterprises, and nonprofits. He earned his MBA from the Haas School of Business at U.C.-Berkeley. He is the Founder & CEO at Smoketown, a boutique consultancy that helps brands, businesses and nonprofits flourish in ways that also transform their ecosystems. Smoketown’s core services include: strategic planning; fractional leadership in marketing and innovation; mission & vision setting; multi-stakeholder collaboration; human-centered design; and AI-powered marketing measurement. Clients have included Edacious, Purely Elizabeth, New Hope Network, Bragg Live Foods, Public Health Communications Collaborative, DeeBee’s Organics and Aura Bora. He is also a writer (Substack newsletter Big Fight), a board member at Mad Agriculture, an advisor at Trailhead Capital and Whipstitch Capital, and a co-founder of (included), the largest peer network of CEOs-of-color in the CPG industry.$ Ryan PintadoSmoketown | Founder & CEO

Experienced project manager, farmer, and investor with 25 years of experience in diverse agriculture related fields. Familiar with all aspects of project development from conception to completion as well as long-term execution.

Landon PlaggeFarmer, Entrepreneur, Community Developer

Candace Spencer is passionate about three things: Jesus, justice, and food. This has led her to a career at the intersection of food systems and racial equity; to start a consultancy to support people living a dairy-free life; and to speak, teach, and write about topics related to Black farmland ownership, food, and agriculture. Candace is an attorney whose prior experience includes process design and facilitation of collaborative processes in the agriculture sector; policy advocacy on agriculture structure issues, such as crop insurance, commodity payment reform, and livestock competition; and legal clinical education with the University of Florida College of Law Conservation Clinic focused on heirs property, community economic development, and urban agriculture policy. Candace is based in DC and often spends her free time baking dairy-free desserts, being outside, and cheering for the Florida Gators.

Candace SpencerIndependent Consultant

Ethan Steinberg is the CEO and Co-Founder of Propagate, an agroforestry project development company focused on helping farmers integrate tree crops into their operations in a way that supports both environmental health and economic viability.

Ethan SteinbergPropagate | CEO

Jackson Takach, the Chief Economist and Vice President of Strategy, Research, and Analytics at Farmer Mac, is a Kentucky native whose strong ties to agriculture began while growing up in the rural town of Scottsville. He joined the Farmer Mac team in 2005 and has worked in the strategy, research, credit, and underwriting departments. Today, his focus at Farmer Mac includes industry analysis and thought leadership, quantitative business data analytics and modeling, and strategic lending partnership development and activation. Jackson is a lead author and creator of The Feed, Farmer Mac’s publication on ag and the rural economy, and he regularly presents to lenders, producers, and industry experts throughout the year. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in economics from Centre College, a Master’s degree in agricultural economics from Purdue University, a Master’s in Business Administration, and a Master’s degree in finance from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business. He has also been a CFA charterholder since 2012 and has served as a director on multiple corporate and volunteer boards.

Jackson TakachFarmer Mac | Chief Economist and Vice President of Strategy, Research, and Analytics

Philip Taylor, Ph.D. (he/him) is the Executive Director of Mad Agriculture. He co-founded the organization in 2016 with his life partner, Nicole Brinks, to reimagine and restore our relationship to the land, sea, and each other through good agriculture. Prior to founding Mad Ag, Philip was a career global ecologist who specialized in ecosystem and soil carbon cycling. His research ranged widely, from understanding soil ecology and ecosystem biogeochemistry to exploring solutions to the sustainability challenges of agriculture. Philip’s work has been published in numerous journals, including Nature, Nature Climate Change, and Ecology, and he has diverse international experience in both private and public sectors, having led research and business efforts throughout North America, Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia. Now, he is bringing his entire being into Mad Agriculture—his life’s work, until he returns to the soil.

Philip TaylorMad Agriculture | Executive Director & Co-Founder

Anna operated her own artisan cheese company for 11 years, so she has experience starting and building small food businesses from the ground up. This entrepreneurship helped her gain knowledge in business plan creation, branding, marketing, accounting, pricing structures, distribution, and logistics. She also obtained valuable insights on securing bank lending and attracting equity investors, in addition to managing the day-to-day finances and bookkeeping. She is passionate about the dairy industry and has worked closely with farms and food operations. Prior to founding Landmark Creamery, Anna worked as a project manager for 10 years, coordinating timelines, budgets, and deliverables for both electronic medical record programs and financial institutions. She also spent time as a Financial Specialist at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources helping businesses remediate previously contaminated land for commercial use. During all these endeavors, she has professionally written for publications in the food and agricultural space, including a decade at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writing a weekly cooking column and features on food businesses and farmers. Anna is an ardent supporter of local food systems and farming. She seeks to create meaningful relationships and connections that allow new and unique businesses to thrive and to help entrepreneurs create the tools and systems they need to help manage their businesses. She is based in Verona, Wisconsin, with her two teenage boys, an enormous orange cat, and a tiny, speckled pup. Anna enjoys browsing farmers markets, being outdoors, and traveling.

Anna ThomasFood Finance Institute | Farm Finance Specialist

Douglas Toal, Ph.D., Co-founder and CEO, is a microbiologist with 25+ years of cross-functional experience spanning medical, pharmaceutical, environmental, and agricultural sectors. He completed his post-doctoral training at the Mayo Clinic and has since held leadership roles guiding both scientific and business teams. His career has centered on applying systems-biology tools (metagenomics, metabolomics, transcriptomics) to discover and commercialize biomarkers that link biology to outcomes in health, environment, and food systems. This breadth uniquely equips Dr. Toal to translate molecular insights into practical tools for agriculture—leveraging the rhizosphere microbiome to improve nutrient cycling, crop resilience, and ultimately the nutritional quality of food. By bridging human health, environmental science, and farming, he is advancing solutions that connect soil health to healthier food production. Dr. Toal holds a B.Sc. in Biology and M.S. in Microbiology from Oral Roberts University, and a Ph.D. in Microbiology from the University of Oklahoma.

Douglas ToalCo-founder and CEO

Lauren Frances Tucker has dedicated her career to evolving our global food system to nourish all life. As the Founder and CEO of reNourish Studio, she works with food companies and nonprofits to develop holistic strategies for regenerating food systems. In collaboration with White Buffalo Land Trust, she convenes industry leading regenerative agriculture projects with companies and producers including The Almond Project, The Elderberry Project, and C4 Cotton. Prior to establishing reNourish Studio, Lauren co-founded and served as the Executive Director of Kiss the Ground, a nonprofit organization committed to raising global awareness about the importance of healthy soils and regenerative agriculture. Her education includes a B.A. from American University, agricultural courses at the University of Ghana, and specialized training in permaculture design, regenerative agriculture, soil science, herbalism, and living systems strategy. Lauren serves on the board of Seatopia and advises select food companies and organizations. Lauren works with clients both domestically and internationally, while living in Hawaii with her family where she enjoys gardening, cooking, hiking, yoga, and herbalism.

Lauren Frances TuckerreNourish Studio | Founder + CEO

Jay Watson serves on the Global Impact Leadership team and is responsible for efforts to advance progress on General Mills' 10 global impact commitments, including the 2030 regenerative agriculture commitment and ambition. In his role, Jay leads a team that collaborates with farmers, farm advisors, NGOs, researchers, suppliers, retailers, and gov’t agencies to deploy programs that build capacity for agricultural systems to deliver positive outcomes for ecosystems and communities in prioritized landscapes & jurisdictions. Prior to his first agricultural sustainability role in 2016, Jay spent 10 years in a variety of buying roles within the company’s global sourcing organization. Jay and his wife Christel of 15 years live in Minneapolis, Minnesota with their two children, and serve their county as licensed foster parents for children in need. He enjoys family bike rides, jogging around the neighborhood lake, volunteering with kid sports and activities, and traveling with family and friends.

Jay WatsonGeneral Mills | Director, Regenerative Agriculture | Global Impact Team

Mark Watson currently serves President and Co Founder of Potlikker Capital (a non profit charitable loan fund) an integrated capital fund supporting dedicated to support BIPOC farmers at the intersection of racial and climate justice. Potlikker Capital is a supporting entity to Jubliee Justice and RSF Social Finance. He also served as Managing Director of the Fair Food Fund, which offers catalytic capital with a social equity lens and co-designed and launched an integrated racial justice capital fund, The Boston Impact Initiative Fund. He is also the founder of Keel Asset Management LLC, a financial advisory firm that provides socially responsible financial planning and investment adviso

Mark WatsonPotlikker Capital | President & Co-Founder

Brandon is on a mission to create a regenerative revolution in agriculture. In late 2017, he helped launch Mad! to help farmers transition their land to regenerative organic agriculture by providing agronomic and business planning support, building new crop markets, and providing access to aligned capital. Mad Capital is now working with farmers on over 117,000 acres in 17 states in the US, on track to transition 18,000 acres of land to certified organic. He manages the Mad Capital team and works actively across the company, spanning sales, credit, operations, asset management, fundraising, and strategic planning. Other notable accomplishments include biking from coast to coast across the USA in 2016, hiking the 272-mile Long Trail through VT, and touring the USA for four months, living out of a truck before landing in Boulder, CO, where he lives with his wife, Lily. Outside of the Madness, you can find him hiking in the backcountry, getting into macro-economic debates, riding his bike, cheffing it up over the grill, or reading a book.

Brandon WelchMad Capital | Co-Founder & CEO

Darren WolfbergTriangle Digital | Chairman, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Antony Yousefian is a Partner at The First Thirty Ventures, where he focuses on the crucial role of soil health in both planetary and human well-being. He specialises in identifying and funding early-stage entrepreneurs who leverage data-driven, deep-tech solutions to drive innovation in the agri-food sector. At The First Thirty, Antony steers investments towards technologies that create a competitive advantage by harmonising with nature. His career began in asset management, where he recognised the growing importance of sustainable investing and pinpointed the agri-food sector as a key intersection for addressing investor demands about productivity, environmental impact, and social responsibility. This insight led him to explore private investments in early-stage technologies, which culminated in founding and helped to scale up several start-ups in the agri-food space. Now, Antony applies his extensive experience to support the next generation of innovators at The First Thirty. In addition to his investment role, Antony is a nominator for the Earth Shot Prize and serves as an advisor to the Food Foundation and Agrimetrics.

Antony YousefianThe First Thirty | Partner

Amanda joined Dirt Capital Partners in 2022 and is responsible for sourcing, evaluating, and closing new investments. She has a background in commercial real estate acquisitions and a passion for impact investing in sustainable agriculture. In roles at Strategic Office Partners (a platform of TPG Real Estate), Angelo Gordon, and W. P. Carey, Amanda acquired ~$2B in predominately single tenant real estate, including office, industrial, and retail properties. Additionally, she worked on social impact investments in the food and agricultural sphere as an angel investor, consultant, and entrepreneur, with groups such as Slow Money NYC, Blue Marble Ice Cream, and Local Farms Fund. Amanda received a B.S. in Finance and Accounting and a M.A. in Food Studies from New York University. She is also a CFA® charterholder and serves on the board of Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems Funders (SAFSF). Previously, she served as a board member of the CFA Society of Phoenix and the Orange County Land Trust.

Amanda ZakharovDirt Capital Partners | Director of Investments

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Agenda

Over the course of two days, the RFSI Forum will guide attendees through a curated journey of strategic insight and meaningful connection. Through keynote presentations, expert panels, real-world case studies, interactive workshops, and small group discussions.

Day One

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Day 1: Tuesday, October 7

REGISTRATION / OPENING COFFEE | 8:00 am CT

9:00 a.m. CT

Welcome

9:10 a.m. CT

Sowing the Future: Investing in Regeneration at the Speed of Climate, Culture, and Capital

Tina Owens, Transformational Investing in Food Systems & Snowehaven Regeneration

Amid all the economic and political activity that might influence current perspectives and approaches to investing in agriculture and food, there are powerful undercurrents quietly creating tailwinds that will define the future of regenerative systems. This opening session will zoom out and look at recent and important global shifts that are noteworthy in how regenerative systems will be valued in the near future.

9:30 a.m. CT

Panel: Ground-Truthing Regen Investing: Inside the Realities of Regenerative Operators

Abianne Miller Falla, CatSpring Yaupon • Matthew Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald Organics • Landon Plagge, Green Acre Milling

Farmers are the foundation of any resilient food system. Understanding their realities is key to successful investments in the space. We'll sit down with three regenerative land stewards and learn what they wish investors and funders knew — about risk, farm finances, and where capital (and what kind of capital!) can actually help catalyze their on-farm transformation. The answers might surprise you!

10:15 a.m. CT

State of the Union: How Today’s Economic and Political Currents Will Shape Regenerative Systems

Jackson Takach, Farmer Mac

In 2025, a unique convergence of macro economic factors, investment trends, and political shifts are creating a unique set of headwinds and tailwinds for regenerative agriculture. Find out what this means for the development of the space and investments into it.

COFFEE BREAK & NETWORKING | 10:45 a.m. CT

11:30 a.m. CT

Panel: Investing Across Asset Class & Return Spectrum in Regenerative Agriculture & Food

Brad Keith, SLM Partners • Mark Lewis, Trailhead Capital • Kathleen Paylor, RSF Social Finance
Moderated by: Renee Cheung, Bonterra Partners

Join a dynamic conversation with seasoned fund managers deploying capital across farmland, natural assets, venture, and debt. This session offers an investor-focused look at how each asset class unlocks unique opportunities in regenerative agriculture and food. Learn how strategies have evolved over the past decade — and where the smart money is heading next.

12:15 p.m. CT

The Catalytic Power of Philanthropy

Sarah Franz, Healing Soils Foundation

All too often, investors work siloed within their asset class, when in reality diverse forms of capital are necessary to create impactful and financially successful investments in the long run. This short presentation will explore the catalytic power of philanthropic capital and why collaboration between asset classes is a key unlock.

12:20 p.m. CT

Fireside Chat: Capital with Roots: Inside Two Investors' Journey to Regenerative Agriculture

Houda Ferradji, Impact Assets • Donna Holmes, Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT

Organic, regenerative agriculture investing is no longer a niche—it’s a proven strategy for
delivering financial returns alongside measurable impact. Yet for investors, understanding
how and where to deploy capital in this space requires patience, due diligence, and the
right frameworks.

In this session, two investors, a shareholder and a noteholder, share their journeys into
organic and regenerative agriculture, culminating in their decision to invest in Iroquois
Valley, a pioneering perpetual-life REIT in the sector. Hear how they evaluated
opportunities, what sparked their conviction, and the challenges and lessons they
encountered along the way.

12:45 p.m. CT

Clarity Before Capital: The Toolkit for Profitable Regeneration

Noah Munro, Good Roots

Capital can help regenerate land, livelihoods, and local food systems when it’s grounded in clear business foundations. This session breaks down three kinds of clarity that turn capital into long-term results: Strategic, Market, and Financial. We’ll explore the story of the Painterland Sisters, a fourth-generation dairy that used a focused plan, a clear financial model, and a disciplined go-to-market strategy to launch a national yogurt brand, close a seed round, and build a clear path to profitability. You’ll leave with a practical toolkit to apply clarity in your own business or investment portfolio.

LUNCH | 1:05 p.m. CT

2:00 p.m. CT

Send Off to Concurrent Sessions

2:05 p.m. CT

Breakout Discussions

These more intimate sessions will allow you to go deeper on some of the most pressing issues facing regenerative food systems investment.

Discussion 1: Consumer Demand: What Does it Take to Grow Regen Demand and Who's Doing the Work?

Led by: Anthony Corsaro, Regen Brands

Discussion 2: Developing Inclusive Investment Strategies for Marginalized Farmers & Founders - Part 1: Framing the Landscape

Led by: Seanicaa Edwards Herron, Freedmen Heirs Foundation

This first part of a two-part workshop explores the obstacles that marginalized and founders face today, including:
- What are some historic and systemic barriers?
- What has been lost in 2025?
- What are farmers and founders needing today from the finance and investment community?

Discussion 3: Emerging Tech Topics: How Can Leading Edge Technology Help Advance Regeneration?

Timothy Childs, Nutri8 • Colin Cureton, Forever Green
Moderated by: Greg Krupa

Here we explore some of the exciting ways that technology - both traditional and new - is emerging to enable and advance regeneration. From AI to traditional crop breeding, learn what these technologies can bring to the space and where the opportunities for investment are.

2:50 p.m. CT

BREAK TO NEXT SESSION

2:55 p.m. CT

These more intimate sessions will allow you to go deeper on some of the most pressing issues facing regenerative food systems investment.

Breakout Workshops & Small Group Discussions

Discussion 1: Insuring the Future: Aligning Risk, Resilience, and Regeneration in Food and Agriculture

Led by: Zara Aspenson, Croatan Institute

From the field to the boardroom, risk is a defining factor in how decisions are made — and too often, it’s a barrier to regenerative investment and practice. This session brings together voices from across the food and agriculture value chain — farmers, natural capital asset owners, and large-scale CPG companies — to explore how each stakeholder experiences and addresses risk. We'll examine how conventional frameworks may fall short in a regenerative context and what might need to change to better address how risk perception is evolving in the face of climate volatility, shifting consumer demand, and new policy? This session will unpack not only the risks of action, but also the under-appreciated risks of inaction.

Discussion 2: Developing Inclusive Investment Strategies for Marginalized Farmers & Founders - Part 2: Building the Tools

Led by: Lolita Nunn, Potlikker Capital

This second part of a two-part workshop explores what financial vehicles and terms should look like to meet the needs of marginalized farmers - first by digging into some examples and then through smal group discussions.

Discussion 3: Investing in Soil Carbon Projects-Understanding the Potential Risks and Rewards

Led by: Bert Glover, Impact Ag Partners

What does it really take to make a succesful investment in soil carbon projects? This interactive session will explore the risks and rewards of soil carbon investments, focusing on three critical dimensions: generating, measuring, and monetizing carbon. You’ll hear insights from an experienced leader in the space and engage in an open dialogue to unpack both the opportunities and the complexities of this growing market.

COFFEE BREAK & NETWORKING | 3:40 pm CT

4:20 p.m. CT

The Risk Myth: Unlocking Potential in Regenerative Real Asset & Private Equity Investing

Stephen Hohenrieder, Grounded Capital • Amanda Zakharov , Dirt Capital Partners
Moderated by: Ali Humphrey, Sextant Capital

Risk - real or perceived - is often the greatest barrier to capital flowing into regenerative food and agriculture, with some investors considering investments as untested and outcomes hard to measure. Yet, when approached with discipline, regenerative real assets and private equity strategies can offer strong downside protection and resilient long-term value. This session brings together two experienced investors to explore share how they evaluate and structure regenerative farmland and private equity investments to mitigate risk, build value and resilience, and deliver appropriate and competitive returns alongside measurable impact.

4:45 p.m. CT

Panel: From Emerging to Essential: Financial Strategies to Normalize Natural Capital as an Asset Class

Paola de Almeida, Pegasus Capital • David Cooper, Diversifund • Chris Larson, Alder Point Capital
Moderated by: David Bennell, Transformational Investing in Food Systems (TIFS)

Natural Capital is emerging as an asset class in its own right - and agriculture has in important role to play within it. As larger players and institutions explore how to engage in this space, this session will dig into the opportunity that is attracting them and the financial vehicles that will be needed to normalize natural capital as an asset class.

5:30 p.m. CT

Decoding Regenerative Supply Systems: Models, Tradeoffs & Investment Implications

Julie Davenson, Soil & Climate Initiative • Emily Lafferty, Seven Sundays

Regenerative supply chains are essential for the expansion of agriculture but supply chains can be vary greatly, adding complexity to already complex investments. Learn about different types of supply systems and sourcing strategies, the role each plays for farmers on the ground, and how they each can influence the type of investments needed.

6:00 p.m. CT

Closing Comments

EVENING RECEPTION | 6:00-7:30 p.m. CT

Brought to you by:

*****
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Day One

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Day 2: Wednesday, October 8

WELCOME BREAKFAST & NETWORKING | 8:00 am CT

Breakfast brought to you by: ZEGO

9:00 a.m. CT

Welcome

9:10 a.m. CT

Transparency as a Key Lever to Enable Human Health & Wellbeing

Colleen Kavenaugh, ZEGO

9:15 a.m. CT

Opening Keynote: Reshaping the Future of Farm Finance

Zach Ducheneaux, Owner of DX LLC & former administrator of the USDA’s Farm Service Agency

9:35 a.m. CT

Letting Go of the Status Quo: Building Innovative Finance Solutions for Regenerative Farmers

Vincent Gauthier, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) • Myriah Johnson, Farm Credit Services of America • Lauren Manning, Food System 6 • Mark Watson, Potlikker Capital • Brandon Welch, Mad Capital

Debt financing is a vital part of the capital stack for farmers because it provides non-dilutive growth capital. Yet, traditional debt often falls short for regenerative farmers — relying on assumptions of short-term returns, asset-heavy collateral, and conventional production models. What these farmers need instead are more flexible, patient, and innovative structures that align with transition periods and long-term resilience.

In this Finance Innovation Showcase, you’ll hear from three bold initiatives that are reimagining debt finance for regenerative agriculture. These efforts are engaging food companies, traditional ag lenders, investors, and philanthropy to create solutions that better serve farmers and unlock the next wave of regenerative growth.

COFFEE BREAK & NETWORKING | 10:25 a.m. CT

11:05 a.m. CT

Fireside Chat: Lessons Learned from 8 Years Building Agroforestry Systems from Farm to Retail Shelf

Ethan Steinberg, Propagate

National interest and adoption of agroforestry in the U.S. have grown significantly in recent years, driven by its benefits for climate adaptation and diversified income. Propagate, founded in 2017, recognized this opportunity early and set out to unlock the potential of agroforestry—widely adopted globally but underdeveloped in the U.S.—as a scalable, investable solution for agriculture. This session explores their journey in charting the complex path from farm to food product, and what it truly takes to build new markets from the ground up. Discover how a visionary start-up is navigating barriers, shaping systems, and creating opportunities that position agroforestry as a cornerstone of regenerative investment in the U.S.

11:30 a.m. CT

Pitch Session: Agriculture & Health: Solving Global Health Challenges with Agricultural and Food Interventions

Hosted by Anthony Yousefian, The First Thirty
Featuring Pitches from: Appeal Foods, GrownBy, RhizeBio, & Triangle Digital

Around the world, rates of chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, heart disease, autoimmune disorders, and certain cancers are soaring and investment in agriculture and food systems offer a key lever to address this. In this fast-paced and informative pitch session, companies that recognize agriculture not just as food production, but as a scalable health delivery system with significant economic potential, will share their solutions to enable and accelerate regeneration.

12:20 p.m. CT

Innovation that Cultivates Indigenous Food Systems

Lee Garman, NATIFS

12:35 p.m. CT

Breakout Discussions

These more intimate sessions will allow you to go deeper on some of the most pressing issues facing regenerative food systems investment.

Discussion 1: Small Group Round Tables - Various Topics

Small group table discussions on various topics will be available for attendees to choose from.

Discussion 2: Leveraging Blended Finance and Catalytic Capital - What's Working and What's Not?

Led by: David Bennell, TIFS
With: James Cutler, Front Hill Partners • Paolo de Almeida, Pegasus Capital • Andre Ticoult, TransCap Initiative

In this interactive workshop, explore how to better deploy blended finance and catalytic capital to increase investments in regenerative agriculture. Themes will include strengthening blended finance, raising institutional investor and corporate capital, and building a pipeline of investable deals.

Discussion 3: From Greenwashing to Greenproofing: Verification and Due Diligence for Investors

Chris Larson, Alder Point Capital

As capital flows into regenerative agriculture, investors face the challenge of distinguishing real impact from greenwashing. This session unpacks how to design and execute due diligence processes that go beyond surface claims—ensuring investments are both financially sound and authentically regenerative. Learn practical tools and approaches to move from greenwashing to greenproofing.

1:20 p.m. CT

RETURN TO PLENARY ROOM FOR LUNCH

LUNCH | 1:20 p.m. CT

2:15 p.m. CT

Winner of Pitch Session Announced!

2:20 p.m. CT

Case Study: Designing & Implementing a Fund for Farmers of Color

Samantha Bailey, Midwest Farmers of Color Collective • Kat Gilje, Just Futures Impact • Zoe Hollomon, Midwest Farmers of Color

Black, Indigenous and farmers of color (BIPOC) are at the forefront of regenerative agriculture, growing food and stewarding land with practices rooted in ancestral knowledge, community, and resilience. Yet, they remain significantly underfunded and underrepresented by both public and private capital - receiving less than 0.2% of all U.S. agricultural land loans and just a fraction of USDA subsidies. Midwest Farmers of Color Collective (MFCC) has created a fund that reveals a new path forward for BIPOC growers and producers, and acknowledges their role in transforming our food system for good. In this session, MFCC shares insights from their journey to develop a unique place-based and mission-aligned investment tool, as well as the strategy and structure behind the fund. Investors and funders seeking to advance racial equity and support the long-term viability of regenerative agriculture won’t want to miss it!

2:45 p.m. CT

5 Things Funders Should Know to Strengthen Outcomes of Regenerative Ag Partnerships

Joy O'Shuaghnessy, American Farmland Trust (AFT)

Partnerships between farmer groups, multinational CPGs, funders, and investors are essential to scaling regenerative agriculture and unlocking its systemic benefits. In this session, we’ll highlight the key ingredients of successful collaboration and what it takes to build partnerships that deliver meaningful, multi-stakeholder outcomes.

2:55 p.m. CT

What's Needed to Unlock Institutional Scale Capital

Ingrid Dyott, Recently Retired from Neuberger Berman

With 25 years of experience advancing sustainable and ESG investing, Ingrid will unpack why institutions both should—and increasingly do—care about regenerative agriculture. She’ll explore the barriers that limit deeper engagement and outline what can be done, whether you’re working inside an institution or influencing from the outside, to grow institutional involvement in this critical space.

3:10 p.m. CT

What If...? Reimagining the Future of Investing in Agriculture

Hallie Fox, The Nest • Jay Watson, General Mills • Ryan Pintado-Vertner, Smoketown

Investors explore big ideas and key prompts around how to think and approach investing in regenerative agriculture differently - including topics such as growing for resilience and getting soil health on the balance sheet - in this fast-paced and engaging session. Learn what big ideas have already been put in motion and what holds different types of investors back when it comes to allocating capital in new ways.

3:55 p.m. CT

Lessons from the Field: Investing in Evolving Food Systems

Lauren Tucker, reNourish Studio

An exploration of the next level of regenerative investing, moving beyond the way we inherently fragment individual projects and outcomes toward integrative approaches to investing opportunities that catalyze the evolution of whole food systems. Through case studies, reimagining roles, and practical approaches, this session will highlight how investors can play a role in developing the capability for systems to generate new orders of value thereby harmonizing individual and systemic risk and returns. Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of how investors, companies, and governments can further their mission and goals by working in ways that develop the capacities required for systemic evolution.

4:20 p.m. CT

Reflections & Commitments: Key Take-Aways to Shape Your Work in the Year Ahead

4:40 p.m. CT

Closing Remarks

CLOSING DRINKS | 4:45-6:00 p.m. CT

*****
Click on the green arrows at the top of the agenda to scroll to next day.

< BOOTCAMP ANCHOR >

RFSI Bootcamp

On October 6, join us in Minneapolis for an interactive and informative program that is designed to jump start the fundraising journey for regenerative agriculture farms, businesses, and start-ups!

The RFSI Bootcamp is a half-day, pre-course to the RFSI Forum geared toward farmers, ranchers, producers, emerging brands and early stage start-ups that would like to better understand the regenerative food systems investment landscape and how to more effectively engage in it.

This jam-packed afternoon is perfect for anyone seeking a better understanding of this emerging capital landscape – especially those who are starting to fundraise. Attendees can expect to engage with different types of capital allocators, service providers, experienced fundraisers, and peers who are on the same journey.

The Bootcamp will be held at the Humphrey School Conference Center, 301 S 19th Ave Room 100, Minneapolis, MN 55455.

Note: You do not have to register for RFSI Forum to attend RFSI Bootcamp.

Day One

1:00 p.m. CT

Welcome

Sarah Day Levesque, Regenerative Food Systems Investment (RFSI)

1:10 p.m. CT

Framing the Capital Ecosystem

Sarah Day Levesque, Regenerative Food Systems Investment (RFSI)

The ecosystem of capital for regenerative farms and food system start-ups is growing as the imperative for systems change becomes more obvious. Here, attendees will get a short introduction to what this financial system looks like and better dig into:
– What does the landscape of capital for regeneration look like?
– What are the different types of capital available?
– How does each type of capital fit into the landscape and into the life cycle of a farm or company?

1:30 p.m. CT

Reverse Pitch Session: Meet the Funders

Drew Blankenbaker, Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT • Michael Jones, RSF Social Finance • Antony Yousefian, The First Thirty • Dominick Grant, Dirt Capital Partners

Meet the very diverse types of investors and funders working in the regenerative agriculture and food space through this fun and informative pitch process! Learn about what types of projects each funder invests in, what they are looking for from your operation, and what they bring to the table through investment – including what size check and strategic support.

2:00 p.m. CT

Balancing Mission & Margin: Lessons for Your Fundraising Journey

Beth Leonard, 4P Foods

With a unique journey from impact investor to start-up CFO, Beth Leonard has learned a thing or two about fruitful funding strategies and relationships. In this session, she will:
- Provide insight about how to balance mission and margin
- Make the case for a diversified capital stack and what this looks like
- Share other key lessons learned as a fundraiser

COFFEE BREAK | 2:30 p.m. CT

2:50 p.m. CT

Raising Equity, Debt & Grant Capital

Andy Larson & Anna Thomas, Food Finance Institute

Learn the keys to developing a game plan for successfully raising both debt and equity.
- What will potential capital partners need to see and what do you need to prepare?
- Do you need a pitch deck?
- What will you be asked and what questions should you be asking... yourself and potential capital partners?

3:20 p.m. CT

Fireside Chat: Lessons from the Fundraising Journey

Colleen Kavanagh, ZEGO • Ethan Steinberg, Propagate
Moderated by: Greg Krupa

Learn from experience fundraisers who have already raised capital and have plenty of lessons to share from their journey.

– What do other farmers and fundraisers wish they knew before they started their capital journey?
– How can you navigate the additional complexity of raising outside capital?
– What if an investor says no – where to go from there?

3:50 p.m. CT

Resource Yourself: What to Expect & How to Best Prepare

Meet directly with speakers and other valuable industry players.

In this interactive session - designed to be part round-table discussions and part resource fair - attendees will get to engage directly with investors, funders and service providers to get their specific questions answered.

4:45 p.m. CT

Reflections for Accessing Capital to Create a Thriving Ecosystem

The ecosystem of support services for both fundraisers and investors in the regenerative agriculture and food systems space is growing. Equipped with a new understanding of the capital landscape and those that are engaged in it, how can farmers, founders and funders individually and collaboratively work together to raise more capital to build a thriving ecosystem.

5:10 p.m. CT

Close of Program

RFSI FORUM WELCOME DRINKS | 5:30 p.m. CT

Separate Location

<TOUR>

Regen Farm & Food Systems Tour

After a few days at the RFSI Forum in the city, plan to get out to a regenerative farm operation and supply chain operator and learn from those building a regenerative food system. The Regen Farm & Food Systems Tour is an optional add-on experience taking place 8:30 a.m. – 2:45 p.m. on October 9, the day after the RFSI Forum ends.

Salvatierra Farms
Salvatierra Farms is a 63-acre regenerative poultry farm. Of those 63 acres, 26 are mature woodlands with trees over 60 years old. In recent years, thousands of hazelnut trees have been planted to support the farm’s long-term goal of reforesting the land and integrating native perennials into its regenerative production system. Salvatierra serves as the primary research and development farm within a broader national network known as the Poultry-Centered Regenerative Agroforestry (PCRA) ecosystem. Chickens raised on the farm are marketed under the Tree-Range® Chicken brand—a farmer-led label that provides economic viability and market identity for producers across the system.

Lorentz Meats
Lorentz Meats is a full-service, niche meat packing company in Cannon Falls, Minnesota, specializing in natural, organic and grass-fed meat processing. Now in their fifth decade, they have grown in their capabilities to serve national niche meat brands, while maintaining their commitment to serve local farmers who bring in just one animal.

<PITCH>

Pitch Session

Agriculture & Health: Solving Global Health Challenges with Agricultural and Food Interventions

Each year, the RFSI Forum – along with our partner The First Thirty – host a pitch session for early-stage start-ups who are working to enable regenerative outcomes for planetary and human health and wellness. This year, we will put particular emphasis on highlighting the deep connection between how we produce food and the health and nutrition of the broader food system.

Our current industrial agriculture systems can negatively impact human health and nutrition through multiple, interconnected pathways, including nutrient decline, pesticide and chemical exposure, ultra-processed, commodity-driven diets, and indirect health impacts from environmental degradation. Impacts range from nutrient depletion and chronic disease to chemical exposure and microbiome disruption, and are costly to both individuals and society as a whole.

Applications to Pitch are now closed. View the top ten semi-finalist companies, and the four finalists chosen to pitch at the RFSI Forum here!

< VENUE ANCHOR >

Venue & Accommodations

RFSI Forum Venue: Quincy Hall

1325 Quincy St NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413
The 2025 RFSI Forum will be held at Quincy Hall in Minneapolis, Minnesota! Quincy Hall is located in the fast growing Northeast Minneapolis Arts District. This eclectic neighborhood boosts several restaurants, breweries, a kombucha fermentary, and more! In the early 20th century, this neighborhood favored food production and Quincy Hall was home to a food manufacturer and was situated next to a General Mills factory and the “grain way” train.

THE HOTEL ROOM BLOCK IS FULL!
Emery, Autograph Collection

Located in an elegant, historic bank building with lush plants, Emery is a relaxing home base nestled near restaurants, bars, and all that downtown Minneapolis has to offer. At the hotel, guests can enjoy locally roasted coffee and fresh pastries at Spyhouse— the local boutique coffee shop, or take in the flavors of Northern Italy at Giulia—— a restaurant in partnership with five-time James Beard Finalist Chef Steven Brown.

< SPONSOR ANCHOR >

Thank You To Our Sponsors

DIAMOND SPONSOR

Iroquois Valley Farms

Iroquois Valley® provides capital to organic, regenerative and transitioning farmers across the United States through long-term leases, flexible mortgages, and post-investment support. Structured as a real estate investment trust (REIT), a public benefit corp and a B Corp that is regulated by he SEC, we offer impact-driven individuals and institutions the opportunity to invest in transforming our agricultural system in partnership with land stewards. Since our founding in 2007, we have invested approximately $125M in organic agriculture. Our goal is to make organic, regenerative agriculture the norm, not the exception, benefitting the health of the soil for future generations.

Further information

DIAMOND SPONSOR

Propagate

Propagate helps farmland owners grow trees alongside their crops or livestock to make farming more profitable and sustainable. By integrating trees that produce fruits, nuts, or timber—an approach called agroforestry—farmers can create steady income while improving soil health, water quality, and biodiversity and reducing carbon emissions. Propagate makes this process simple with tools and support, including farm planning software, hands-on assistance, and access to financing. This helps farmers reduce risk and successfully integrate tree crops into their farming systems.

ZEGO believes you have the right to know what’s in your food. We craft delicious US-grown allergen-friendly oat products. Scan the QR code on ZEGO’s packaging for tests of 500+ toxic residues like glyphosate and heavy metals.

Further information

COLLECTIVE SPONSORS

Zero Foodprint + Healing Soils Foundation

1% Collective Regeneration Program: 1% from each Forum attendee registration will be used for the implementation of a regenerative agriculture project in Minnesota by Zero Foodprint, and will be matched by the Healing Soils Foundation. Learn more about Collective Regeneration.

BOOTCAMP SPONSOR

Food Finance Institute

Food Finance Institute (FFI) envisions a world where resilient food and farm businesses anchor vibrant communities and a thriving planet. We help food and farm businesses thrive at every stage through finance-forward training, coaching, and consulting.

Further information

BOOTCAMP SPONSOR

Outside Minds Creative

Outside Minds Creative is a brand & graphic design studio on a mission to bridge the gap between consumers and regenerative agriculture through thoughtful visual storytelling. Our mission is to elevate regenerative brands and connect them with their audience by providing original branding and strategic marketing collateral.

Further information

TABLE SPONSOR

GrownBy

GrownBy is the farmer-owned marketplace for local food. A tech-solution by farmers, for founders.

Further information

TABLE SPONSOR

Vanilla Bean Project

The Vanilla Bean Project is the world’s first Regenerative Organic Certified® vanilla company, and they shipped their first load of vanilla beans via sail freight to reduce carbon emissions in 2025. They manufacture premium vanilla extract and vanilla bean paste.

Further information

TABLE SPONSOR

The Midwest Center for Regenerative Agriculture at Powell Gardens

The Midwest Center for Regenerative Agriculture at Powell Gardens advances sustainable farming and ecological stewardship through community education, land restoration, and conservation partnerships, connecting people to prairie, woodland, and regional biodiversity while promoting resilient, regenerative landscapes.

Further information

BRONZE SPONSORS

Alder Point Capital • Grounded Capital • Trailhead Capital

<DONORS>

Block

Food & Beverage Donors

Not only do we TALK about investing in regenerative agriculture and food, we ENJOY tasty, nutrient dense regenerative foods at the Forum! Attendees get to choose from many regenerative snacks throughout the day and proteins at lunch all sourced from regenerative farms and ranches.

Become a Sponsor

Sponsors of the RFSI Forum are the companies and organizations leading the transition to regenerative agriculture and food systems. Sponsorship packages are tailor-made for diverse types of businesses and offer unique value, including:

Increased visibility and thought-leadership among a unique investor and activator community
Opportunity to showcase your expertise and services
Promotion through media coverage before, during, and after event
Branding throughout the event

Thank you for joining us at the 2025 RFSI Forum!

Investments in the agricultural transition present one of the biggest opportunities of our time – with the potential to drive resilient financial, environmental and social outcomes at scale.

Join us in October and leverage the biggest community in regenerative agriculture and food investing to reach your goals!

About

Who Should Attend?

Farmer Scholarships

Speakers

Agenda

RFSI Bootcamp

Regen Farm & Food Systems Tour

Pitch Session

Agriculture & Health: Solving Global Health Challenges with Agricultural and Food Interventions

< VENUE ANCHOR >

Venue & Accommodations

RFSI Forum Venue: Quincy Hall

THE HOTEL ROOM BLOCK IS FULL!Emery, Autograph Collection

Thank You To Our Sponsors

Zero Foodprint + Healing Soils Foundation

Alder Point Capital • Grounded Capital • Trailhead Capital

Become a Sponsor

THE HOTEL ROOM BLOCK IS FULL!
Emery, Autograph Collection