Eric Archambeau

Exciting to see the growing landscape of early-stage climate tech investors supporting Dutch and European startups! Connect with these any many more investors (700+) for free on the Startup Fountain website. (Feel free to tag any climate startup that is raising in the comments) This investor map from Startup Fountain highlights over 60 firms and angels investing €50K-€5M in climate solutions. Key players include: • 4impact VC • ABN AMRO Sustainable Impact Fund  • ASIF Ventures • Cottonwood Technology Fund • Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam Many anonymous angels are also active in this space. The diversity of investors - from corporate VCs to university-linked funds - shows the momentum building in climate tech. Founders working on climate solutions in the Netherlands and across Europe, there's capital out there to support your vision! Let's connect if you're working in this space. #ClimateInvesting #StartupFunding #Sustainability #DutchStartups Jorn Eiting van Liempt Eline de Haan Sybo Zijlstra Elizabeth Kleinveld Dorus Olgers Victor Straatman Tommy Hurley Claire Tange Joyce Houterman Abdul Afridi Alex Menn Martin Schreurs Sem Foreman Stefan Bary Thorsten Wittmuetz Emily Kegels Therese Angel François-Xavier Fanard Bart van den Heuvel Filip Celen Rob Haenen Alain le Loux Andy Lurling Max Schalow 👨‍🚀 Chingiskhan Kazakhstan 🤠"

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🌟 Weekly Funding & Trends Update! 🌟 🔹 PHINXT Robotics in London raised €2.3M led by Sure Valley Ventures and participation by Ada Ventures, HEARTFELT_ and Atlas Ventures, in an oversubscribed round! 🔹 Led by Bert Baeck, Timeseer.AI, a Belgian platform that offers a data reliability & observability platform secured an undisclosed investment from OTB Ventures. 🔹 Swiss startup DemoSquare, which enables public-procedures teams to browse, monitor, analyse, and predict legislation, to help anticipate risks and identify opportunities, gathered €1.28M in pre-seed funding, led by QBIT Capital and participation by early stage investor, HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF). 🔹 Vilniaus universitetas / Vilnius University startup, Biomatter raised €6.5M from Inventure and UVC Partners for their biotech platform that uses AI to create new enzymes. 🔹 London-based Kennet Partners launched a €266M fund for #B2B SaaS startups. Despite a challenging market environment, early-stage funding remains robust, with #AI and #healthcare sectors consistently attracting substantial investments. European startups are strategically positioning themselves with new funds in technology-driven sectors, preparing for a potential rebound in late-stage investments. #venturefinance #startups #investment #AI #healthcare #B2B #fundingnews

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Eight years ago today Marie-Alexandrine Burrows and I set up Vertical Future with a full debenture on all our assets and a loan thanks to HSBC, two toddlers to support, and were essentially "all in" to build a business that can make a difference. There have been so many highs and extreme lows to comment on, but I'll cover some of them. Extreme lows have included a rapidly changing market, through to delivering our first project during COVID, tough supply chains, a market crash that lasted literally years whilst you have to at the same time fundraise, rising interest rates, bad debtors, losing some key staff along the way, and all of the stress that goes with all this. Our "highs" come from many people organisations, and places. Through the hard work and commitment of our team (and their families), starting with Darren James, Jennifer Bromley and Sebastien Chenhalls-Walker and later on Adam Proctor and Mark Pickering, our dedicated investors, mentors and external supporters, the customers that have kept confidence in us leading to further work together, and our future customers (watch this space for some big updates soon!), the World Economic Forum, World Green Economy Organization (WGEO) and finally Innovate UK who have recognised the high-quality of our systems and science, we are today in a great position and are very optimistic about the future. Thank you to ALL those I've mentioned, anyone I may have forgotten, and the more recent supporters of VF from Unreasonable where I met some amazing people. There's still lots to do but what a journey it has been so far! 2 more years until the decade mark and we'll be sure to throw a big celebration then, and I'm sure that through everyone's continued commitment, there will be fewer lows and a lot of extreme highs! The video below doesn't begin to show the story of Vertical Future to date (with all the good stuff AND bad stuff any start-up/scale-up experiences), but I think it's the best and most up-to-date representation of our work to date. Good luck to everyone out there building a business, especially those across our sector - this is not a market for one company to dominate (it's simply too big), so we should all support each other. Now time for a nice Sunday lunch with the family to celebrate... good day all! #verticalfarming #CEA #agriculture #technology #change #climatechange #expansion #innovation #scaleup #global https://lnkd.in/ec3kSrcR

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The last few days I've been attending SynBioBeta conference in San Jose, CA. Really cool innovations that are tackling big problems in health, industrial production, and climate. It was also AgFunder's AGM... some non-standard observations: 1- Venture markets are not back: it will not be a bounce, but a slow recovery 2- Smart startups are partnering with engineering/EPC firms earlier in their life. This is key to de-risk scale production from day 1. My first employer out of college Black & Veatch was a key partner in the growth of Tesla, and now they're active in the bio space 3- If you say you're AI, you better prove it. Nothing wrong with saying you're doing ML

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A compelling profile of our portfolio company, Groundwork BioAg, from Haaretz. Entitled, "The Israeli Company That Uses Fungus to Tackle the #Climate and #Soil Crises," this piece walks through how Groundwork discovered a way to increase #agricultural #crop #yields by means of #mycorrhizal #fungus. And as an amazing, bonus, the #soil to which the fungus is added #sequesters more #greenhousegases than the most advanced #carbon-trapping systems on the planet. When looking at #CDR projects remember that there are only three things that matter: 1) #Scalability - how quickly and #economically can the CDR platform be deployed? 2) #Measurability - can the #sequestration be confirmed? 3) #Quality - is the removal #permanent? A link to the article is provided in the comments below. #decarbonization #gigacorn #gigacornhunter #climatechange #climatech Yossi Kofman Danny Levy Dan Grotsky Hanan Dor Inbar Morag Andrew Duff Jack Levy Jonathan Schwartz Mick Messman Brian Mixer Claus Dr. Hackmann Idan Mor Adi Vagman Gil Eiges Adam Fell

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Three reasons why I like this post of Joint Impact Model Foundation on their cooperation with BIO - the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries : 💡 interesting read on #impact measurement 🫶 someone else talking about what you do right instead of yourself 👏 compliments to people that deserve it

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I love this article from Ian Hogarth! The US has shown what's possible, but here in Europe (and especially in the UK), we have a tremendous opportunity to follow the American footsteps. That is why, in 20 years, I don't think I've ever seen such a good time to be investing: - the platform shifts we're seeing today operate at an extraordinary scale, and much of the fundamental innovation underpinning this is coming out of Europe - repeat, successful entrepreneurs are building again, at pace - society has become inherently entrerpreneurial ("starting a business" is now the top career choice for undergrads at many UK universities) - there is funding available now at all stages of a company's lifecycle - as was clear at Slush last week, the market is now 'back' - risk is back on, deals are being done, funds are being raised, - but valuations are sensible; good for investors but good for companies too as expectations are in check with reality - and the upside is considerable! 10 years ago, we couldn't have imagined there being even 1 trillion dollar company; now we have 7! A good time to be building, a good time to be investing, a good basis for optimism. AlbionVC, John Thornhill, Matt Clifford, John Taysom, Sherry Coutu CBE Max Bautin, Andy Phillipps, George Coelho, Tom Nugent, Brent Hoberman, Hussein Kanji, Chris Smart, CAIA

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🚀 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗙𝗦𝗜 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗦𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻! 🌍 We’re excited to announce our sponsorship and hosting of the RFSI Pitch Session, a unique opportunity for early-stage solutions to showcase their innovative ideas and drive the future of regeneration. If you're working on groundbreaking solutions to scale and accelerate the transition to a regenerative food system, this is your chance to shine! 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆? 𝗚𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗩𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: Present your idea to a room to an audience of more than 500 investors who are passionate about accelerating regeneration and sustainability. 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀: Connect with key stakeholders and collaborators who can help elevate your solution and expand your impact. 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀: Leverage feedback and insights from experienced professionals to refine and scale your project. What We’re Looking For: Innovative solutions that address environmental regeneration and sustainability challenges of the food system Projects in the early stages of development with large scalability potential. Teams are committed to creating positive change and driving meaningful results. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆: Submit your application by 3rd September for a chance to pitch your solution at the RFSI Forum in October. Don’t miss this opportunity to be part of a movement dedicated to transforming the future of our food system! 👉 Apply Now: https://lnkd.in/egcBmqZQ We can’t wait to see your innovative ideas and support your journey toward making a lasting impact! If you have any questions, please feel free to comment below or feel free to message me. #RFSI #Innovation #Regeneration #RegenerativeAg #PitchSession #EarlyStage #Regenag #foodsystems #agtech #agritech #naturetech

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We are excited to welcome TRACT to the Working Capital Fund portfolio! Fragmented sustainability data is a chronic pain point for corporations seeking to operate ethical and sustainable supply chains and Tract offers a unique opportunity to influence sustainability reporting at scale across commodities with well documented risks of labor exploitation. Historically siloed data has obfuscated visibility into labor and environmental conditions of upstream suppliers and forced suppliers to allocate an extensive amount of time filling in redundant forms.  Tract is positioned to help solve this problem as a platform designed by and for industry leaders to align around standardized methodologies, metrics, and schemas. Under the expert leadership of CEO Allison Kopf, Tract will aim to unlock customers' ability to navigate, oversee, and share sustainability data. We are pleased to join Rabo Investments along with existing investors Cargill, Louis Dreyfus Company, ADM and Olam in the effort to drive supply chain transformation in key agricultural commodities. 

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Should You Raise Funds from VCs at the Pre-Seed Stage? I have a clear stance on this: it's better to spend this time on execution. This is something I’ve emphasized in consultations over the past couple of weeks. Why? Because there are many funds out there that claim to invest at the pre-seed and seed stages. Founders compile lists of these funds, reach out, and - voila! They get a response, and even a call is scheduled. At this point, founders might think they’re close to securing the funds, but from the VC side, this is often just part of their deal flow gathering process. An associate will take the call, listen attentively, and tell you that you’re doing great and have an interesting idea. They’ll ask you to keep them updated on your progress. Then, they’ll put your startup’s info into a CRM, and if you’re lucky, they might check back in a few months to see if you have traction. Of course, it’s possible that you’ll captivate them and secure an investment. But in most cases I’ve seen, founders spend 2-3 months (or even up to 6) trying to raise funds from VCs, only to find that they could’ve spent that time on execution instead. With some initial traction, you’ll open the doors to a broader range of seed investors who are ready to invest in a project with proof of traction. If you have a stellar team and are a second-time founder with a successful exit, you likely don’t need this exercise, as you probably already have a line of interested investors - especially those who backed you before. As for whether you should raise pre-seed funds from angel investors and how to go about it - that’s something I can discuss in my next post. Show some unicorns 🦄 here if you’re interested!

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💡 Watch this video, in which the importance of shareholder voting in tackling the climate crisis is perfectly articulated by Mark van Baal from Follow This | Shareholders change the world.

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Does anyone know an 'impact investor', 'seed capital' or 'accelorator' that ACTUALLY does real, seed capital for start ups? We've raised 600K+ Euros for InsectBiotech Group but cannot find a single one of these outfits that actually does seed capital. Our start up cash is from founders, individuals and friends. Many outfits say they do this, but don't actually seem to. Now it might be that our plans suck, but we know they don't. So what am I missing? How does one find climate/agri/start up investor groups that actually do seed capital, rather than coming in later for Series A etc? Love to hear your thoughts. (staggeringly, every single UK investor outfit will only look at things under EIS/SEIS no matter what the opportunity. So much for innovation!)

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𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹: 𝗪𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗩𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗜𝗜 𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗰𝗮𝗽, 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆-𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲! 🚀 🌍 When we started with Vsquared Ventures deep tech was a niche to many and it has been great to see and experience that this has changed. Right now there is immense opportunity for #Europe to become a global deep tech powerhouse and to make the continent future-proof. Companies that solve real problems through real technology on a global scale will be successful and these are the ones we partner with. We are excited to have already invested in amazing companies with Vsquared II (Synthara AG NEURA Robotics, cylib, Quantune Technologies GmbH Dynelectro constellr , Atrandi Biosciences | Droplet Genomics , Lace Lithography). As we continue to drive forward with Vsquared II, we remain dedicated to leveraging not only capital, but also our expertise, extensive partner and network for our founders, with the goal in mind to prove that the next global deep tech leaders can and will be European. Thank you to the LP’s for trusting and supporting us on this journey and the best team, for being part of this! Thanks a lot to Miriam Partington at Sifted and Nadine Schimroszik Handelsblatt for the coverage 🙏🏽! (Link to the articles in comments) Cc: Lise Rechsteiner, PhD , Dr.-Ing. Herbert Mangesius , Benedikt von Schoeler , Patrick Tucci , Ferdinand Vermersch , Michael Jobst , Jakob Lingg , Gina Krymalowski, Patrick Hümmer

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🚀 57% of our investments are certified B Corp! We just added 2 to the mix: #Untamed | B Corp™ and #KoRo! At Five Seasons Ventures, we do as we preach, so we are also B Corp certified ourselves. Even though the label is far from perfect, it certainly has its advantages: - Fast growing community: from 1.2k certified companies 10 years ago to over 9k today. - Trusted and recognized by consumers and investors - Holistic approach: B Corp offers a comprehensive framework, recognizing companies that prioritize ESG, but also giving companies extra points if their products "promote the health and wellness of individuals" or "reduce toxins or pollution" for example (aka impact) According to our head of Impact Gaetan Kerloc'h: 'there is a strong correlation between certified companies and my own evaluation of their sustainability practices. With the new framework currently in development, I believe this alignment will only grow stronger.' 💚

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What an incredible achievement by our portfolio company, Q*BIRD B.V., as they bring scalable quantum security to Europe's largest port, the Port of Rotterdam. This trial marks the first of its kind in the world. To put things into perspective, the Port of Rotterdam is a powerhouse: 👉 It generates over 500,000 jobs 👉 It adds over €60 billion of value to the Netherlands. 👉 It ranks as the world's fifth most significant bulk port. 👉 It is the tenth largest container port. 👉 It accommodates 28,000 oceangoing ships and 90,000 inland vessels every year. Staying ahead of emerging security threats is crucial for the port, which already has cryptographically secured communications. However, the increasing sophistication of hackers and growing geopolitical tensions in the world require increased security measures to protect critical infrastructure like ports. This remarkable achievement is the result of a close collaboration between Q*BIRD B.V., Port of Rotterdam, Cisco, Eurofiber, Portbase, Intermax, and InnovationQuarter. QDNL Participations, Chad, Cheryne #quantumsecurity

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The trend is picking up. Investing in #deterrance & #defence to further support competitiveness and resilience of #European countries. This time Netherlands Ministerie van Defensie is joining other #EU MoDs and national development agencies to facilitate access to funding for #defence #DualUse and #security innovations. Our fund Coinvest Capital was the first in the region, fully authorised to invest in pure #defense already back in March 2023, shortly joined in April by Baltic Sandbox Ventures with #DeepTech focus and the launch of dual-use accelerators by ScaleWolf in October. Just our fund alone already coinvested 6.8mEUR in #aerospace and #defense, including one of the largest regional #VC rounds in Unmanned Defense Systems. Today we will be watching and supporting two teams from #Lithuania - winners of our joint prizes with DEPO Ventures - pitching on stage at #DefSec innovation challenge hosted by Dr. Kristina Soukupova with their solutions for #cyber #security and #drone enhancement, that enables all drone makers to get faster time-to-market. Wishing the best of luck and a solid pitch to the teams of AI Drone.Tech with co-founders Laurynas Česūnas and Domantas Brucas, winners of our prize at the defence #hackathon The Flaming Shield of Lietuvos šaulių sąjunga , and CBRX with co-founder Kazimieras Sadauskas, winners of our prize at the Startup Lithuania annual event #StartupFair

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SoiLabs is a venture backed by Sanyo Chemicals and Hafnium Hafaway. SoiLabs aims to solve 100% of the okara waste problem faced by soybean processor. Despite its advanced nutritional status, the utilization of okara remains a challenge due to its short life span, poor digestibility and undesirable sensory properties. Soilab’s technology converts okara into Soi-X, a protein rich intermediate with longer shelf life for creating higher value-added products. Soi-X can be used as a component in various applications, from food and agriculture to cosmetics and animal nutrition. The use of Soi-X contributes to the circular economy approach, adds to the sources of bio-based substrate, improve sustainability credentials and fulfil growing demand. Read more about Soilabs’s CEO Mauro Catellani interview with Blue Tech Wave as he discusses the venture’s transformation technology for turning food waste into various sustainable solutions. Jason Lim Heng Kiang Soon, PhD John Savage Gwen Teo #sustainability #circulareconomy #decarbonisation #okara #valourisation #venturecapital #agritech Republic Polytechnic

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🦄 Are you following Survival to Thrival on Linkedin? We’ll be sharing excerpts (like the one below) from 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙡 𝙩𝙤 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙫𝙖𝙡 and 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙤𝙧 𝘽𝙚 𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙙 that you won't want to miss out on. "Building an enterprise startup from an idea on a whiteboard into a sustainable industry-leading business is every entrepreneur's dream. The Survival to Thrival series delves into the critical stages of building a successful enterprise, mirroring the journey depicted in the graphic above. Every startup journey goes through distinct stages - from figuring out the Founding Idea and early product, to figuring out Go-To-Market and driving growth, all hoping to build a sustainable valuable business that fulfills the mission. Yet, it’s insanely hard. It requires the right idea, the right people, painful setbacks, intense learning— and an immense amount of work and a good dose of luck. Book one’s four main themes: • 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁: For enterprise entrepreneurs maniacally focused on their current major startup milestone, practical advice from the battlefield to help win now and anticipate what’s next along the path from initial startup idea to sustainable industry leader. • 𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸” 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵: Go-ToMarket Fit. Product-Market Fit is a well-known and incredibly important milestone for enterprise startups, but for enterprise startups, PMF doesn’t unlock growth. There is a missing link that doesn’t really have an identity, yet it’s very real and very important. We call it Go-To-Market Fit. • 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴: Once a startup achieves GTM Fit, it’s no longer about Survival; it’s about Thrival. Everything changes. Execution changes. Mindset changes. Investors change. It’s maddening and really hard. Much of what used to work no longer works. The very things that used to work for the startup now hold it back. • 𝗗𝗮𝗺𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼, 𝗱𝗮𝗺𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁: The enterprise startup journey is fraught with painful situations, difficult changes, and situations for which there is just no good answer." Want all the info now? Both books are available for FREE download here: https://lnkd.in/gCWWH48 #EnterpriseStartup #GoToMarketFit #Entrepreneurship #StartupJourney #BusinessGrowth

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Over the past few days, I’ve been visiting lots of #farms in Europe and seeing the #regeneration and #destruction that management practices can have in the #land, #nature and environment. These practices are relatively unknown to the consumer and the huge gap between regenerative practices and industrial agriculture as well as the #positiveimpact that regenerative management can have! How do we create #impact in food systems? It starts with the health of farms #soils. Lots of positive externalities come from restoring soils. Soil health is an #outcome and regenerative practices have to be outcome driven. I’ll be talking about creating ‘impact in food systems and regenerative agriculture’ at the Impact Investor Global Summit in London Tuesday next week alongside fellow panelist’s Rosie Wardle, Carli Roth, Matteo Squilloni and Charles Avery. With lots more discussion about regenerative agriculture, sustainable farming and organic conversions - it’s an excellent time for this panel which touches on #naturalcapital, #farming and #foodsystems. Especially in the wake of the latest season of Clarksons Farm where #AndyCato and George Lamb with Wildfarmed joined #JeremyClarkson and Charles Ireland on the farm. Maybe Regenerate Outcomes will be there next season 😉 Our team at Regenerate work across Private Equity, Outcomes and Venture Capital, all working across regenerative agriculture. Come and see us at the event! Regenerate Asset Management European Investment Fund (EIF) Synthesis Capital The Rockefeller Foundation New Private Markets Ryan Cameron David Bates Nicholas Burlington Addy Windsor-Clive Erik Bruun Bindslev Oliver Martin Jeremy Stroud Timothy Coates Taimur Malik Philippa Saxon Matt Jordon Tom Dillon Christopher Heathcote Jake McNaughton

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