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Ben Gordon
Building a farmer- and climate-centered model of farmland investing to drive returns and impact
Ben Gordon is the CEO and co-founder of Fractal Agriculture, a farmland investment platform that connects investors with farmers to drive both impact and returns.12 Here are some key details about Ben Gordon:
Professional Background
- Current role: CEO of Fractal Agriculture, based in San Francisco4
- Previous experience:
- Co-created Corteva Agriscience's carbon program
- Led Business Development at Corteva Agriscience
- Background in agriculture technology, management consulting, and private equity due diligence2
Military Service
Ben previously served as an Infantry Officer in the US Army.2
Education
He attended the University of Minnesota - Carlson School of Management.4
Personal Background
- Originally from North Dakota, where his family's original homestead is still farmed by extended family2
- Currently resides in San Francisco, California2
Fractal Agriculture
Under Ben's leadership, Fractal Agriculture:
- Provides farmers with equity capital and investors exposure to farmland as an asset class1
- Focuses on investing in row crops across the Great Plains3
- Uses data science technology to better underwrite fields, similar to Zillow's approach in real estate3
- Partners with farmers to collect operational data, incentivizing them to share information for potentially better investment valuations3
Ben Gordon's approach with Fractal Agriculture aims to create a win-win situation for both farmers and investors in the agricultural sector.
Highlights
I'm hiring a Chief of Staff / Biz Ops Lead to help scale Fractal as we launch our first capital vehicle and accelerate capital deployment to farmers!
This person will work across the business on key projects to help our fantastic team level-up the most important things we're working on.
If you're someone passionate about climate, finance, investing, or agriculture and wants an opportunity to build something that matters, apply below. I really hope we can give someone a chance that not only changes our business, but the career growth and trajectory of someone who will make an impact!
While we are a remote-first company overall, this role will be in San Francisco
I admit I'm usually skeptical of the consulting firm reports about regenerative agriculture that state how much of a win-win it is for farmers and the environment.
We still don't have widespread adoption, and it's not because farmers aren't smart enough to see the win-win. It's because there are real risks and challenges that are guaranteed in the transition with upside that is less certain in both timing and magnitude.
Expected value doesn't matter to a farmer if there's a real chance of ruining the farm. Farmers can experience more volatility in a year than most businesses do in a decade. We need to go beyond high-level proclamations and easy narratives and instead build products to help farmers move the needle in the ROI / risk equation that farmers weigh on a daily basis. Hopefully we're putting our money where our mouths are at Fractal Agriculture alongside other great partners building in the space.
The recent report Bain & Company and World Economic Forum did one of the best jobs I've seen in conveying how the power of finance can help farmers invest in regenerative ag practices where they make sense for the farmer (this isn't because I'm a Bain alum or one of the authors managed both my wife and I separately on two different continents).
Report Link: https://lnkd.in/er9X5wWF
