What Trailhead Capital does

Trailhead Capital is a Denver, Colorado-based venture capital firm founded in 2020 that invests in early-stage companies deploying technology-enabled solutions to expand regenerative food and agriculture practices. The firm was originally established as the family office of Bobby Pelz — co-founder of the global grain brokerage McDonald Pelz Global Commodities — before being restructured in 2020 when Managing Partners Mark Lewis, Pete Oberle, and Tripp Wall joined Pelz to form a new General Partnership focused on raising institutional venture capital. Trailhead targets Seed and Series A-stage companies across nine thematic verticals spanning the regenerative agriculture value chain, including AI-driven decision intelligence (SWARM Engineering), RNA-based crop diagnostics (Crop Diagnostix), sustainability measurement (HowGood), carbon removal via enhanced rock weathering (Eion) and mycorrhizal fungi (Funga), farm data infrastructure (Leaf), food safety software (Provision), farm-to-fork commerce (Local Line), farmland equity (Fractal), and biological crop protection (Ascribe Bio).

The firm applies a proprietary SOIL/SYSTEMS/STAKEHOLDERS investment framework to assess impacts on soil health, systemic value creation, and stakeholder effects. Trailhead takes Board roles in roughly two-thirds of portfolio companies, actively supports LP co-investment opportunities, and structures its portfolio as an interconnected ecosystem. Regeneration Fund I LP closed oversubscribed at $50 million in September 2023, with anchor LPs including WovenEarth Ventures, the Cisco Systems Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation's Zero Gap Fund, and The Rodale Institute. The firm is preparing Fund 2 with a $75 million target to write larger checks and secure larger ownership stakes. As of early 2025, the portfolio comprises 28-30 companies with two exits to date (notably Vence, acquired by Merck Animal Health), and the fund is reported to be tracking in the top quartile for its vintage.

Name

Trailhead Capital

Legal name

Trailhead Capital

Website

https://trailheadcap.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Trailhead Capital is a Denver-based venture capital firm founded in 2020 that invests Seed and Series A capital in early-stage companies deploying technology-enabled solutions across the regenerative food and agriculture value chain, serving institutional LPs through closed-end fund vehicles.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital / Investment Management

NAICS

Open-End Investment Funds (525910)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Investors, Nec (6799)

akta.pro primary industry

Biodiversity, Conservation & Natural Capital Funds (FSANAJAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Natural Resources Funds (Timberland, Farmland, Minerals) (FSANAEAK)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• Regenerative agriculture
• Impact investing
• Agtech investments
• Food system investing

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulder

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Fund Management / Carried Interest: Trailhead Capital generates returns for Limited Partners (institutional and accredited investors) by managing its Regeneration Fund I LP ($50M closed September 2023) and the upcoming Fund 2 ($75M target). Revenue is derived from management fees on committed capital and carried interest (performance fees) on investment returns, targeting a 3.0x net return to LPs over the life of each fund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Trailhead Capital is a mission-driven venture capital firm that manages closed-end investment funds deploying Seed and Series A capital into early-stage companies building technology-enabled solutions for regenerative food and agriculture. The firm raises capital from institutional and accredited Limited Partners and invests across the regenerative agriculture value chain, from farm inputs to consumer packaged goods, with a current portfolio of 28-30 companies.

Product overview

Trailhead Capital operates as a mission-driven venture capital investment firm offering two structured investment funds focused on regenerative food and agriculture: Regeneration Fund I LP ($50 million, oversubscribed, launched April 2021) and the upcoming Fund 2 ($75 million target). The firm specializes in Seed and Series A stage investments, deploying capital across the regenerative agriculture value chain from farm inputs through supply chain to consumer packaged goods. The portfolio spans 28-30 companies including technology providers in AI/ML (SWARM Engineering), crop health diagnostics (Crop Diagnostix), sustainability intelligence (HowGood), carbon removal (Eion, Funga), farm data infrastructure (Leaf), food safety software (Provision), local food commerce (Local Line), farmland equity (Fractal), and biological crop protection (Ascribe Bio).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Regeneration Fund I LP Trailhead Capital's inaugural $50 million closed-end venture capital fund investing in Seed and Series A stage companies deploying technology-enabled solutions to expand regenerative agriculture practices. The fund closed oversubscribed in September 2023 with commitments from WovenEarth Ventures, The Cisco Systems Foundation, The Rockefeller Foundation's Zero Gap Fund, and The Rodale Institute, and targets a 3.0x net return to LPs.
• Regeneration Fund II Trailhead Capital's second venture capital fund targeting $75 million to write bigger checks and secure larger ownership stakes in regenerative food and agtech companies, targeting market-rate returns of 3.0x net to LPs.

Quantifiable outcome

• 30M acres impacted, 24.3 MT carbon sequestered, 445M gallons water conserved across portfolio companies
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Radicle Growth: Radicle Growth is an early-stage agtech and foodtech accelerator and fund. It has co-invested alongside Trailhead in multiple deals (SWARM Engineering, Leaf) and competes directly in the Seed/Series A regenerative and digital agriculture investment space.
• Open Prairie Ventures: Open Prairie is an early- and growth-stage venture firm investing in agriculture technology, with funds focused on rural and agtech innovation. It has co-invested with Trailhead in SWARM Engineering and competes in the same Seed/Series A deal universe.
• Cultivian Sandbox Ventures: Cultivian Sandbox is a venture fund focused on innovative technologies across the food and agricultural value chain. It targets early- and growth-stage companies similar to Trailhead's Seed/Series A regenerative ag focus, with comparable institutional LP structure.
• The Yield Lab: The Yield Lab operates global agrifood tech accelerators and venture funds with presence in North America, Latin America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. It targets Seed-stage agrifood and agtech companies directly comparable to Trailhead's portfolio construction.
• Acre Venture Partners: Acre Venture Partners is a venture capital firm investing in companies across the food system, with a focus on sustainability and health. It targets similar Seed/Series A opportunities in regenerative and sustainable food and agriculture as Trailhead Capital.
• Pelican Ag: Pelican Ag is a venture and private equity firm investing in agriculture and food companies. It co-invested in Mad Capital alongside Trailhead and competes in early-stage regenerative and sustainable agriculture deals.

Broad incumbents

• AgFunder: AgFunder is a venture capital firm investing across the agrifood technology stack, with multiple funds including growth and early-stage vehicles. AgFunder co-led Eion's Series A alongside Trailhead and represents one of the most established agrifood VC platforms globally.
• S2G Investments: S2G Investments is a multi-stage venture and growth fund focused on food, agriculture, and ocean. It co-invests alongside Trailhead in several portfolio companies (Omeat, Eion, Leaf) and represents a much larger, more established agrifood VC with comparable thesis around sustainable food systems.

Regional players

• SP Ventures: SP Ventures is a Brazil-based agrifoodtech venture capital firm managing early- and growth-stage funds. It has co-invested with Trailhead in Leaf's Series A and shares comparable agrifood thesis with regional focus on Latin America.

Emerging players

• WovenEarth Ventures: WovenEarth Ventures is a climate tech fund-of-funds and direct investor that has backed Trailhead's Fund I as an LP. It invests across climate solutions including regenerative agriculture and serves as both a peer (in climate/regen thesis) and an LP relationship for Trailhead.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/trailhead-capital

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments27 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Trailhead Capital