July 23, 2021

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

Bonifiche Ferraresi (BF) has agreed to invest EUR 120 million (US$141 million) via one or more tranches in the Italian fund Agritech & Food, a closed-end alternative investment fund managed by Fondo Italiano d’Inoltre Sgr, controlled by the Cassa Depositi e Prestiti Group (which itself holds an 18.8 percent stake in BF through Cdp Equity).

GAI News announced in March of this year that Fondo Italiano was preparing to launch Agritech & Food – a thematic vehicle with a funding target set for EUR 700 million (US$824 million).

Begun in 2010 through the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance with the goal of promoting growth in the country’s economy through closed-ended funds, Fondo Italiano operates through both direct investments and fund of funds activities, managing a total of 10 closed-ended funds with AUM exceeding EUR 3 billion (US$3.5 billion).

Bringing this fund to play, Fondo Italiano will provide capital for growth in a medium-to-long-term time horizon in order to promote the increased adoption of technology, and to enlarge and enhance the resilience of Italy’s agri-food chain.

With sustainability and commitment to ESG fundamentals for Fundo Italiano in its investment thesis, Fondo Italiano is launching the Agritech & Food fund in line with its new Business Plan “Forward 2023”, which aims to strengthen sectors that are strategic to Italy’s growth.

With this in mind, the fund will target investment opportunities in the most cutting-edge and highest potential categories, including precision farming, seeds, green chemistry for agriculture, bio-energy technologies, agricultural products and related industrial transformation processes, and e-commerce for agricultural products.

Through this fund, Fondo Italiano will be actively contributing toward the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined by the UN – particularly, however, number 8: “Good employment and economic growth”; number 9: “Enterprise, innovation, and infrastructure”; and number 12: “Responsible consumption and production”.

This investment by BF is subject to authorization from Consob (Commissione Nazionale per le Società e la Borsa) to begin marketing the fund – conditional that initial underwriting commitments of EUR 250 million (US$294 million) are secured.

– Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and  Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Group’s Oilseed & Grain News. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.