The vehicle has received backing from Farm Credit Canada and will target C$75 million.
The asset manager has appointed a new COO and a horticulture general manager.
Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a VC fund founded by Bill Gates, contributed to a $12m second-phase seed round alongside Harvest Road and other investors.
The firm’s C$30m pilot vehicle invested exclusively in projects that could generate carbon credits and has been able to deliver IRRs in the high teens.
Tengelmann Growth Partners led the round, with participation from existing investor Emil Capital Partners.
Competitive markets and new fund investments dictate that the pension expects it will take up to 24 months for its capital to be deployed through Ceres’ Midwest-focused open-ended farmland vehicle.
The vehicle has secured €35m in cornerstone investments and will build out a 12,000ha portfolio of greenfield and brownfield assets.
The agtech start-up is one of many new companies using precision fermentation to develop alternative protein products.
The firm’s natural capital vehicle has invested in a 400ha regenerative almond project in Spain, while its carbon strategy has backed the two million ha Restore Africa initiative.
Eric Cooperstrom says Manulife’s Forest Climate Fund will support both internally developed projects and collaborations with established carbon development companies familiar with regional methodologies and regulation.