Private Credit Brings Regenerative Farming Capital to Scale

Mad Capital’s $78.4M Perennial Fund II shows how private credit is reshaping finance for regenerative agriculture in the US

15 Dec 2025

For much of its life regenerative farming in America has survived on belief rather than money. Farmers keen to rebuild soil and cut chemical use discovered that banks preferred quicker paybacks. Nature, meanwhile, works to a slower clock.

That mismatch is beginning to narrow. On September 15th 2025 Mad Capital closed its second Perennial Fund at $78.4m, more than triple its original target. After several increases the fund ended up oversubscribed, a rare fate for an approach long seen as worthy but risky.

The novelty lies less in the sum than in the structure. Perennial Fund II is a private-credit vehicle, not an equity one. It lends to farmers shifting from conventional methods to regenerative systems that emphasise soil health, crop diversity and resilience. Such transitions can depress yields before they improve them, making short-term farm loans a poor fit.

Mad Capital has designed its loans to reflect that biology. Repayment schedules allow for early swings rather than penalising them. Farmers retain ownership of their land. Investors receive steady, asset-backed returns linked to farmland and long-duration lending. The firm says it is “aligning capital with biological reality”, a phrase that sounds lofty but captures a practical adjustment.

The appetite for the fund mirrors wider strains in food and farming. Climate shocks are becoming more frequent. Input prices remain high. Consumers are scrutinising how food is produced. Regenerative agriculture is increasingly framed not as a moral cause but as a hedge against volatility. Until recently the missing ingredient was finance.

Private credit is now stepping in, alongside public schemes rather than in place of them. The risks are real. Extreme weather can undo careful planning, and the science of measuring regenerative outcomes is still young. Yet investors appear willing to treat these hazards as calculable, not fatal.

The signal is clear enough. Regenerative agriculture is edging towards the financial mainstream. As more patient capital arrives, farmers gain room to manoeuvre, lenders face fresh competition and durability begins to rival yield as a measure of success.