CarbonFarm Raises €7 Mn Series A to Reduce Emissions from Rice Farming

The funding round was led by Colam Impact, the impact investment arm of Colam Entreprendre, the holding company of French family-owned group Sonepar.

Other investors included Proparco, Suma Capital, elea, Working Capital Fund, Albo, and BPI France. Existing investors Serena and makesense, through Racine², along with Technmind, also invested again in the company.

“Scale will not come from replacing local value-chain players; it will come from equipping them. They understand the farming systems and have the relationships needed to make change happen. Our role is to help turn this local knowledge into programmes that can attract finance and stand up to scrutiny,” said Carantino, co-founder and CEO of CarbonFarm.

“CarbonFarm is building the enabling infrastructure for one of the largest untapped decarbonisation opportunities globally. We believe its combination of project-development expertise, climate-finance capabilities and digital MRV creates a uniquely scalable platform in the rice sector,” said Benjamine Friderich, Investment Director at Colam Impact.

CarbonFarm will use the new funding to expand its business across Asia, Africa, and Europe, while growing its presence in Latin America.

The company will also improve its technology and expertise to develop, fund, and certify rice farming projects that reduce carbon emissions. It will also help connect these projects with businesses and regulated carbon markets.

Founded in 2021 by Vassily Carantino and James Hastwell, CarbonFarm works with rice farmers, cooperatives, agribusinesses, NGOs, governments, and local partners. The company helps them develop and fund rice farming projects that reduce carbon emissions and measure their environmental impact.

CarbonFarm has developed its own technology in collaboration with leading academic institutions, including Cornell University, INRAE, and the European Space Agency. The technology uses AI, satellite images, field data, and greenhouse gas models to monitor farming practices and measure carbon emissions from individual fields.