Downland recognized by Rabobank in 2024 Report on sustainability-focused startups
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NEW YORK, NY – January 2, 2025 – Downland, a succession planning startup serving landowners and farmers, is proud to announce its feature in Foodbytes by Rabobank’s 2024 report, Harnessing Sustainable Business Models to Catalyze Growth. The report highlights Downland’s work in its Carbon Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) category, which focuses on adapting carbon MRV programs to meet grower needs.
“Being recognized by Rabobank is a testament to our mission of improving land access for young farmers,” said Jessi Roesch, CEO and Founder of Downland. “With a majority of farmers set to retire, ensuring skills in carbon measurement is not just a technical requirement, but a foundational step for building resilient farms that can thrive in the long term.”
The Foodbytes report identifies critical challenges facing sustainability agendas, including inconsistent mandates across regions, regulatory uncertainty, and a global backlash against greenwashing. In this context, Downland’s efforts stand out as an innovative solution, demonstrating how integrating sustainable skills into workforce development can drive business value from day one. By prioritizing baseline carbon assessments for onboarding land, Downland ensures future incentives for carbon sequestration are captured. Incentives include increased appraisal values and dampening the risk of wildfire and drought and secondary, passive revenue streams. This is due to the use of soil health principles in regenerative agriculture that improve soil organic matter and improve water retention capabilities.
“Increasingly, sustainability is becoming integral to all strategic discussions,” Terryn Lawrence, Rabobank North America Chief Sustainability Officer, said in the report. “This is an exciting era, but it demands consistency, data transparency, and ongoing dialogue.”
Downland’s approach emphasizes practical, on-the-ground skill building for growers, addressing one of agriculture’s most pressing challenges: An aging workforce. According to the USDA, over 70% of US farms are set to change hands in the next two decades. Many farms and ranches don't have an heir or formal succession plans in place, creating risks for maintaining farmland in agriculture. By supporting estate and succession planning, and matching existing farmers with apprentices from farm training programs, Downland removes land access as a barrier to entry in the farming vocation.
Regenerative agriculture is a farming approach focused on improving soil health. By prioritizing practices such as cover cropping, no-till farming, and rotational grazing, regenerative agriculture enables carbon sequestration when aligned with appropriate programs. Voluntary or regulatory carbon markets were valued at $949 billion in 2023 according to Reuters. Appropriate skill in carbon MRV practices ensures farmers are able to participate in this market through offering nature-based carbon credits through various trading platforms and tax programs. Carbon programs available to agricultural settings span the gamut, including soil health practices, reforestation, fungal-based food forests, and ground inoculation with fungal crops or biochar.
Downland was featured in Foodbytes by Rabobank's 2024 End of Year Report
Research from Boston Consulting Group finds that farms adopting regenerative practices are 120% more profitable, largely due to reducing dependency on chemical inputs, and improving yields through healthier soils over the long term. This approach creates a sustainable framework for farming that aligns environmental stewardship with economic viability, making it a cornerstone of modern agriculture innovation.
Rabobank’s Foodbytes platform is renowned for identifying and supporting transformative companies addressing key challenges in food and agriculture. Inclusion in this prestigious report highlights Downland’s leadership in regenerative agriculture and its commitment to empowering the next generation of farmers with skills in carbon MRV and related programs.
About Downland. Downland is dedicated to accelerating the transition to regenerative agriculture by improving land access for young farmers. Through estate and succession planning, Downland empowers families who wish to keep their farm in agriculture even if there's not an heir interested in carrying on the operation by matching with a skilled farmer in search of land.
About Foodbytes by Rabobank. Foodbytes by Rabobank is a leading platform for innovation in food and agriculture, connecting startups, corporate leaders, and investors to drive sustainable transformation. Through its annual reports and programming, Foodbytes identifies and supports groundbreaking solutions to the industry’s most critical challenges.
