Mad Markets plants seeds for regenerative organic agriculture’s growth

Mad Markets, a Public Benefit Corporation under the Mad Agriculture umbrella, has launched with the acquisition of Timeless Seeds, Inc., a lentil and chickpea processing company founded in 1987. This strategic move aims to reverse the trend of agricultural consolidation and monoculture by accelerating the adoption of regenerative organic agriculture across the U.S.

“The acquisition of Timeless Seeds is a significant step towards building the 'missing middle' of regenerative supply chains,” says Mad Markets Co-founder and CEO Alex Heilman. Mad Markets recognizes this as an opportunity to strengthen connections between farms, brands, processors, distributors, retailers and institutional sourcing partners.

Mad Markets aims to grow Timeless' sales fourfold in the coming years while supporting rural farm communities and addressing food system-related climate change impacts. This initiative is backed by anchor investors Terra Regenerative Capital and Builders Vision, along with 24 other mission-aligned investors, who collectively aim to expand this model across the country.

Addressing gaps in ag infrastructure

The goal of Mad Markets is to become a go-to source of regenerative organic ingredients for a wide range of clients, from consumer packaged goods (CPG) to wholesale buyers. The strategy aims to build the 'missing middle' of regenerative supply chains by investing in legacy infrastructure companies that can directly connect communities of growers and buyers. “The acquisition of Timeless Seeds is a bold step toward this vision,” says Heilman.

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Mad Markets, incubated by Mad Agriculture over the past two years, began with the goal of creating equitable contracting mechanisms between end users and farmers. “Traditional models often rely on brokerage or toll processing agreements, but to achieve large-scale impact and cost-effective ingredient sourcing, the key is owning and operating the processing assets themselves,” Heilman explains.

“When we refer to the 'missing' or 'messy' middle in the industry, we’re talking about these processing assets, which serve as a crucial link between farmers and end users,” he says. These assets play a pivotal role in maintaining transparency, “connecting the farmer's practices and impact on the land to the end customer, such as a CPG company.” This connection helps processors relay critical information about growers and their practices, which in turn enables CPG companies to create meaningful messaging for consumers.

“Our thesis, and the reason we launched this initiative, is that expanding regenerative organic agriculture at scale requires direct investment in processing facilities,” says Heilman. “This increases their capacity to sell to the broader industry while also capturing and reporting on on-farm metrics that highlight the ecological story of the land.”

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Many of the processing facilities across the country were originally created by the founding farmers of the organic movement, out of necessity rather than business ambition. “While farmers are indeed businesspeople, they are not typically focused on building processing infrastructure,” says Heilman. As a result, many processing facilities often operate under capacity due to geographic constraints or limited access to larger sales and trading opportunities.

“Our vision is to amplify this missing middle by implementing a larger roll-up strategy, which includes sales and trading teams fluent in both buyer and farmer languages,” says Heilman. “With the agronomy expertise to discuss regenerative production systems, we aim to drive ingredient sales and foster a more integrated supply chain.”

Overcoming bottlenecks in infrastructure and food systems

There are two significant bottlenecks that Mad Markets seeks to overcome: creating systems that encourage sales within the industry to support ROC agriculture, and overcoming the current grain processing infrastructure, which is heavily reliant on regional markets within a 100-mile radius.

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For a long time, the industry looked to direct trade as a potential solution to organic and/or regenerative ingredient sourcing. Some CPG companies sought to purchase directly from farmers, but “in reality, 99.9% of CPG companies don’t want to, or can't, transact that way due to factors like food safety audit requirements, legal grain handling regulations and the lack of risk appetite or personnel to manage these systems,” explains Heilman.

What’s more, facilities often have limited capacity for toll processing, which often drives up ingredient costs. “While toll processing provides access, it can be inefficient and costly,” says Heilman. As a result, processors are critical in addressing this part of the supply chain. “Timeless Seeds, which is based in Montana, built a system to enable farmers to plant diverse pulse crops, great for soil health and rotational systems, by creating a facility that supports that region.”

Mad Markets also is working with the Perennial Promise Growers Cooperative, “the world’s first and only cooperative dedicated to perennial grain agriculture.” Currently, it represents about 30 farmers planting Kernza, the world’s first commercially viable perennial grain. Unlike traditional grains, Kernza is planted once and yields grain and stock harvests for three to five years. “It’s a game changer,” says Heilman.

Their long-term goal is to develop seed increase programs to improve Kernza’s grain profile, bringing it more in line with regenerative rye or wheat. “Kernza has tremendous soil-building capabilities, improves water retention and prevents nitrate leaching into waterways, making it one of the most climate-impactful crops in grain production today,” Heilman says.

Mad Markets supports the cooperative by managing its supply chain and commercial development and working with Patagonia Provisions to incorporate Kernza into its beer program, which includes more than 20 national brewers. Patagonia Provisions has also introduced a Kernza pasta line, available nationwide in Whole Foods. “Patagonia Provisions has been a major force in showcasing the potential of perennial grain production systems by using Kernza in products and distributing them through traditional retail channels.”

Mad Markets and Timeless Seeds

The role of CPGs and retailers in growing ROC

Consumer packaged goods companies that want to purchase regenerative organic ingredients often have limited resources to do so. “While a handful of companies can manage it, much of this work is currently done internationally,” says Heilman. “When we look at ROC-certified ingredients, they aren't typically broad-acre grain, pulse or oilseed crops grown in the U.S.”

That’s why Mad Markets is aiming to become the go-to platform for regenerative and organic ingredients. “We can make it simpler for CPG companies or public-school systems to call and say, ‘We'd like to start purchasing regenerative, organic lentils and chickpeas. How do we do that, and how can we share the story of the farms they come from?’”

In addition to Patagonia Provisions, brands like Amy's are making concerted efforts to source regenerative ingredients, highlights Heilman, “an opportunity to showcase their sustainability-focused supply chains to consumers, amplifying the impact of the regenerative revolution.”

“Retailers looking to support brands and carry products that are Regenerative Organic Certified, or that highlight regenerative organic ingredients, play a crucial role in the success of our mission to expand capacity through the acquisition of Timeless and other programs,” says Heilman. “Having retailers promote products that contain these ingredients is key—whether it's single-ingredient products like Timeless’ own retail line, or brands committed to the regenerative movement.”

Heilman notes that retailers like Whole Foods, Costco and Thrive Market are expanding on already substantial organic programs by making concerted efforts to highlight regenerative ingredients. Additionally, “National Co+op Grocers has been a leader in this space for years, consistently doing a fantastic job of promoting regenerative practices,” he says.

Nourishing people while boosting farmer income—and pride

The acquisition will allow Mad Markets to increase capacity at Timeless—whose facility is operating at less than 50% capacity—which will make it possible to support regenerative farming and farmers. “The goal is to be able to say to farmers, ‘Not only have we contracted 500 acres with you, but we’d now like to double or triple your production in lentil and chickpea processing.’” Many pulse and grain farmers aren’t growing crops for human consumption, notes Heilman. “We will be working with farmers to grow crops for human consumption, not just animal feed, and connecting their planted acres directly to a product on the shelf,” he says.

Heilman’s knowledge of food systems stems from his personal passion for food. With a degree in agricultural economics, Heilman began his career as a chef and has worked as a grain trader. “It is incredibly gratifying, both for us and the farmers, to see the results of their hard work in regenerative organic production systems pay off, knowing that the food they grow reaches stores nationwide and feeds people,” he says. “The story of their efforts and the challenges they overcome in these systems becomes part of that product, which is deeply rewarding.”

This article originally appeared on Organic Produce Network, a New Hope Network sister website. Visit the site for information and education relevant to the organic produce industry.