Harvard Management Spinout Raises $850 Million Food and Agriculture Fund
- Solum Partners launched in 2020 with help from the Harvard University endowment and insurer American International Group
Solum Partners, a food and agriculture investment firm that spun out of Harvard Management Co. in 2020, has raised $850 million for a new fund.
The Boston-based firm exceeded its initial target for Solum Partners Fund II LP and related vehicles, according to a statement seen by The Wall Street Journal. The firm plans to invest the fund in large-scale crop producers around the world, according to the statement.
“As the global agriculture and food production industry continues to evolve, businesses have needed to adapt and meaningfully scale operations to keep pace," said Chief Executive Colin Butterfield, emphasizing Solum’s model of partnering with farmers and businesses to bring about operational improvements in addition to capital. Before launching Solum, Mr. Butterfield led the natural resources group at Harvard Management.
The statement did not discuss specific deals Solum has backed. However, in August 2021, the firm announced the acquisition of a majority stake in Monte Vista Farming Co., a California-based almond producer. Solum also owns stakes in avocado producer AvoAmerica and avocado distribution platform Westfalia Fruit, as well as blueberry producer Bomarea S.R.L, according to its website.
Fund II raised some initial capital in December 2021 and had accumulated around $717 million from 38 investors as of December 2022, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Eaton Partners helped market the fund, according to the filing.
Solum’s team spun out of Harvard Management, the firm that manages the $53.2 billion Harvard University endowment, in the second half of 2020. Harvard Management and insurer American International Group Inc. each put up $200 million to support the spinout and help the new firm buy a portfolio of assets that included fruit orchards and soybean plantations from the Harvard endowment.
The spinout was part of a plan by Harvard Management CEO N.P. “Narv" Narvekar, who took the job in 2016, to dismantle in-house investing teams and distribute more to outside money managers. It was also part of an effort to pare back the endowment’s exposure to natural resources in favor of more private-equity and venture-capital investments.
Solum manages around $1.9 billion of capital and has 25 professionals, according to the statement announcing the fund close.
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