Victory Hemp contracts with U.S. regenerative hemp farms to develop quality hemp ingredients for brands making great tasting, nutritious plant-based foods.
Funded on 02/06/2021
Victory Hemp Foods is committed to developing a sustainable supply chain for U.S.-grown, regenerative hemp.
One of Victory Hemp’s contracted farms, Vollmar Family Farms in Caro, Michigan, is a 6th-generation family farm that has been certified organic since 1996. Last year, due to late spring and early summer rains, Vollmar Family Farms was unable to plant roughly half their acreage, resulting in a net operating loss for the farm’s 2019 season. The Vollmars paid interest but were unable to pay down their line of credit due to the poor planting conditions. While they missed the opportunity for primary plantings, they still managed to seed cover crops mid-season on those acres, boosting their soil regeneration.
Most of the Vollmars' remaining inventory is grain hemp. Although they have contracts for the hemp with Victory Hemp, their bank will not allow them to draw on their line of credit due to ongoing complexities associated with industrial hemp and the U.S. banking system.
This loan will fund the purchase of hemp seeds from farmers that need up-front funding to invest in the health of their land.
Victory Hemp will pay for hemp grain Vollmar Family Farms produced in 2020 that has yet to be delivered to the Victory Hemp's processing facility. In a larger-scale adaptation of the CSA model (Community Supported Agriculture), Victory Hemp's purchase of the grain ahead of delivery schedule will provide the financial flexibility the Vollmars need to continue stewarding their land, particularly through their transition to regenerative organic production.
Success.
We hit 100% of our debt goal of $170,000 with 71 lenders in just 36 days.
Thank you, from the entire team at Victory Hemp Foods and Vollmar Family Farms, for your commitment to regenerative hemp grain production and supporting us as we bring better alternatives to the market.
Including your support, over the last five years we have raised over $5M of debt and equity from over 350 mission-aligned lenders and investors that understand that the impact we’re driving is critical to a broad consortium of stakeholders. Thank you for joining us on this journey, forever woven into the outcomes that we effect.
As a separate thank you, aside from the repayment of your loan plus interest, we’d like to share the ingredients that we’ve developed. We believe that trying our hemp seed ingredients is fundamental to understanding the opportunity we have -- to leverage the market demand for healthy, plant-based ingredients into building solutions for the environment through productive and profitable farming practices. Once all funds have been received by Steward from the lenders who participated in the project, we will send you a care package with a sample of our hemp seed ingredients, which are the outcome of your support!
One of the questions that came up from participating lenders throughout the campaign was around the definition and verification of regenerative farming practices. The Regenerative Organic Certification (ROC) was established to provide transparency and clarification. This summer, the Vollmars plan to take their commitment to sustainable farming further and receive Silver Level Regenerative Organic Certification (ROC) on their farm. Some of ROC-Silver criteria is listed below:
Maintains year round vegetative cover on 50-75% of all cultivated land
Minimum of four crops rotated through the same area
Four additional regenerative practices are used in operation (these additional practices include Mulching, Perennial Planting, Grassed Waterways, Vegetative Barriers, Water Conservation and/or Wetland Restoration, and more)
To read more about the ROC and the full requirements for the Silver level, click here: https://regenorganic.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/ROC_ROC_STD_FR_v5.pdf
Can we get more of our supply from acreage that is managed under these principles? That’s Victory Hemp’s goal; seed by seed, acre by acre, year by year.
Thanks for embarking on this journey with us,
Chad, The Victory Hemp Team, and Vollmar Family Farms
P.S. Keep an eye out for future lending opportunities with Victory Hemp at stwd.farm/victory
The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 reclassified hemp as a federally legal substance, which ushered in new potential for growth of U.S. grown and processed hemp-based products, bringing hemp to the forefront of American agriculture. As of December 20, 2018, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted hemp seed hearts, protein, and oil as, “Generally Recognized as Safe” (GRAS) food ingredients.
By 2025, the plant protein market is expected to top $40.6 billion due to increasing demand for great-tasting, allergen- and gluten-free alternatives to animal-based foods. The global hemp foods market is valued at $731.6 M and is expected to reach $3.34 Bn by the end of 2026; a CAGR of 24%.* Rising demand for hemp used in food and beverages is expected to propel market growth due to growing consumer awareness regarding the dietary advantages of hemp.
Victory Hemp has developed two groundbreaking ingredients made from the heart of the hemp seed, V-70™ Hemp Heart Protein and V-ONE™ Hemp Heart Oil. No longer green and gritty like traditional hemp protein and oil, V-70™ and V-ONE™ are neutral in color and flavor, allowing hemp to be used in a wide range of applications for the first time.
Victory Hemp serves the food and beverage, cosmetic and personal care, nutritional supplement, and animal nutrition industries. All Victory Hemp ingredients are Non-GMO Project verified, OK Kosher certified, and are available as natural or USDA Certified Organic.
Founder Chad Rosen created Victory Hemp Foods to bring the benefits of hemp to American tables and American land. In 2014, when the passage of the Farm Bill re-legitimized commercial hemp production, Chad moved to Kentucky—once America’s hemp heartland—where he began work to grow the supply chain for hemp seed in the U.S. As a result, Victory Hemp Foods was born in 2016.
Victory envisions hemp powering a new generation of tasty, plant-based foods that are good for consumers, farmers and the planet. Victory specializes in premier proteins and oils that offer manufacturers compelling taste and performance advantages. These market-changing ingredients enable food and beverage companies to create better foods and as a result unlock the value of the hemp seed for all.
Victory Hemp was the winner of the 2020 Hemp Innovation Challenge™ at the World Ag Expo® in Tulare, CA for the development of their two proprietary ingredients, V-70™ Hemp Heart Protein and V-ONE™ Hemp Heart Oil.
Since relocating to Northern Kentucky (the U.S. hemp heartland) in 2014, Chad has been dedicated to using hemp to fuel sustainable economic development in rural communities.
Ben Raymond, Director of Research & DevelopmentBen joined Victory Hemp to accelerate the innovation of great-tasting, functional, nutritious hemp grain ingredients.
Rob Roscow, Director of GeneticsAt Victory Hemp, Rob dedicates his time to the improvement of hemp as a grain-producing commodity crop.
Nathan Kuchta, CFO
Nate joined Victory Hemp with over 15 years of experience in finance and accounting.
Georgia Pate, Food Safety / Quality Assurance Manager
Georgia brings 13 years of experience in food and confectionary product quality and development to the Victory Hemp Team.
Peter Strugatz, Chair - Board of Directors
Peter is an entrepreneur and investor that brings years of experience in business management and investing in early-stage sustainable food brands.
Mark Vollmar - Owner of Vollmar Family Farms
Mark officially started farming in 1984, but as any farm kid knows, his work on the farm began long before that alongside his dad and grandparents. Mark and his family’s interest in regenerative practices began with a transition to organic in 1996. Now, a quarter-century later, they are still committed to experimenting with new management techniques to reduce inputs, improve soil health, and increase yields.Jordan Vollmar - Owner of Vollmar Organics
Jordan, Mark’s son, runs Vollmar Organics—a partner farm to Vollmar Family Farms. Jordan represents the 6th generation of his family to farm this land. As a land manager, Jordan is passionate about using cover crops to both improve soil quality and provide habitat for beneficial insects, improving the balance of this productive agricultural land.
Victory Hemp's commitment to sustainability is achieved by partnering with responsible farms to develop a transparent hemp supply chain. Victory Hemp is working with U.S. farmers to diversify their crop mix and add hemp into rotations that include peas, soy, corn, and wheat.
This capital raise will fund upfront payment for 2020 organic hemp seed produced by Vollmar Family Farms, which is currently organic and is transitioning to regenerative organic practices. Incorporating hemp into Vollmar’s rotation meets numerous goals of regenerative management:
By manufacturing without the use of GMOs, high heat, and harsh chemical solvents, Victory Hemp delivers non-GMO, American-grown and -processed ingredients that are simple, healthy, and clean.
This loan will be made to Victory Hemp Foods, a Kentucky Public Benefit Corporation, which creates functional hemp ingredients for a variety of consumer goods products.
This loan is for the advanced purchase of 2020 hemp grain that has already been harvested and is in storage waiting to be delivered to Victory’s processing facilities.
The total loan amount is $170K, which will assist Vollmar Family Farms, one of Victory Hemp’s regenerative organic growers obtain the capital they need to plant for the 2021 season.
Vollmar Family Farms is located in Caro, MI, and Victory Hemp Foods processing facility is located in Carrollton, Kentucky.
This loan is set at a 6% interest rate, with an 18-month term, and fully amortized monthly payments beginning in 3 months after an initial deferral period.
Individuals can lend to this project starting with a minimum of $100. Steward is proud to support hemp farms working to grow their businesses. While our payment facilitator does not support transactions to hemp businesses, we have alternative methods available for you to lend to these projects. Please select Wire as the payment option. From there, you can (1) wire in your funds, (2) complete a manual ACH transaction, or (3) mail in a check. Instructions will be sent to you once you complete the checkout process. Thank you for supporting regenerative agriculture!
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