Lewis & Clark AgriFood likes where it sits.
General Partner and Managing Director Dave Taiclet said more than 70% of the U.S. agriculture production occurs within 500 miles of St. Louis. For an investment firm focused on backing food and agriculture companies, that figure is proof the investment firm calls the right city home.
Lewis & Clark AgriFood has taken advantage of the positioning, rapidly expanding its portfolio since launch. And it’s on the hunt for more deals, announcing in July it closed on $257 million across two funds, including $169 million for its AgriFood Fund II and $88 million for its RBIC (Rural Business Investment Co.) Fund II.
Lewis & Clark AgriFood launched as an offshoot of St. Louis-based investment firm Lewis & Clark Partners with the intent of developing a funding strategy in the food and agriculture industries. It focused on later-stage, growth investments and has backed 18 companies since starting its first fund in 2016. It has one exit so far and two other portfolio firms, St. Louis-based Benson Hill and GreenLight Biosciences of Medford, Massachusetts, plan to go public through special purpose acquisition companies.
The St. Louis investor is operating in a sector that’s becoming more popular, with agtech venture investment ballooning in recent years. But Lewis & Clark AgriFood believes its expertise, focus on rural companies and its hometown of St. Louis provide an edge in a space becoming more crowded.
Sprouting a strategy
its start through Lewis & Clark Ventures, a venture capital firm started in 2015 that’s also part of Lewis & Clark Partners. Lewis & Clark Ventures launched an agtech fund in 2016 to focus on early stage investments.
In 2019, Lewis & Clark Partners spun out Lewis & Clark AgriFood, a move Taiclet said was made to build off of Lewis & Clark Venture’s initial investment success and the expertise of its management team around food and agriculture.
“We felt there was a broader opportunity in food, agtech and plant science,” Taiclet said.
Taiclet joined Lewis & Clark Partners with an extensive background in the food and agriculture space, having been the former president of the food group for 1800Flowers.com Inc. (NASDAQ: FLWS). He had previously been CEO of Fannie May Confections Brands and co-founder of Alpine Confections, which sold to 1800Flowers.com in 2006.
The decision to launch Lewis & Clark AgriFood provided an opportunity to expand the firm’s investment thesis as well as the check size of its investments, Taiclet said. Lewis & Clark AgriFood typically writes checks between $5 million to $15 million and prefers to lead investment rounds. On average, it expects to be involved with its investments anywhere from three to seven years before an exit.
Carving a niche
Lewis & Clark AgriFood is far from alone in targeting investment in innovative food and agriculture companies. Its portfolio has grown as more dollars globally flow
into the agtech sector. Through the first half of 2021, investors pumped $4.3 billion into agtech firms, just behind last year’s overall total of $5.15 billion, according to industry publication CropLife.
Lewis & Clark AgriFood recognizes the competition, but is confident there are key characteristics behind the firm’s strategy that make it unique from fellow investors. One is the expertise of its management, both from a technical and operations perspective.
Its management team also includes Managing Director Tim Hassler, who joined the firm in 2019 after being managing partner at St. Louis-based Advantage Capital Agribusiness Partners.
The St. Louis investment group also has an eye on rural areas, with its RBIC fund part of a U.S. Department of Agriculture investment program designed to inject capital into those types of populations. That has given the firm an understanding of rural environments and an
outlet to back companies in parts of the country other investors might overlook, Taiclet said.
CLOSER LOOK
The company: Lewis & Clark AgriFood
The business: Lewis & Clark AgriFood, founded as an off-shot of local venture capital firm Lewis & Clark Ventures, makes growth financing to later-stage food and agriculture companies. It targets innovative companies in plant science, animal health, ingredients and supply chain.
Investments: 18
Leadership: Tom Hillman, founding partner; Dave Taiclet, general partner and managing director. Larry Page and Tim Hassler are managing directors.
