Rabo Frontier Ventures (RFV), Rabobank’s strategic investment arm, announced it has invested in agricultural technology (ag tech) company ProducePay, Los Angeles, Cal.-based company that provides fresh produce farmers with financial resources, technological tools and data insights. ProducePay has secured $14 million in a Series B funding round, which was led by Anterra Capital.

ProducePay’s mission is to help farmers feed the world in a sustainable way, with financial resources, tech tools and data insights.

"Addressing the lack of proper short-term access to financing and transparency within the farming industry supply chain, ProducePay has created the first ever means of 'securitizing' perishable produce as a financial asset through the use of technology,” RFV said.

By alleviating financial pressure for growers while also freeing up cash flow for distributors, RFV said ProducePay provides immediate access financing for farmers and distributors in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, Honduras and Chile for fresh produce sold in the U.S.

As a leading global food and agriculture bank, Rabobank aims to partner with revolutionary ventures in ag tech. ProducePay offers a solution that perfectly fits the food and agriculture ambitions of Rabobank. Its service addresses a significant pain point in the fresh produce value chain. "The platform enables farmers to connect to food retailers in a more cost-efficient and less risky way, of which all involved parties in the food value chain will benefit," Harrie Vollaard, head of RFV, explained.

The Series B funding will be used to finance the next growth phase of the business as it scales its financing business and develops its software platform. It follows significant growth in 2017 in which the company financed $400 million of produce, up from $17 million in 2015.

“We have spent the last three years reinventing how the produce industry accesses short-term cash needs and the transparency of their supply chain. To date, ProducePay has helped move over $850 million of produce,” said Pablo Borquez Schwarzbeck, chief executive officer of ProducePay. “By receiving financial support from Anterra Capital, the leading food and ag tech [venture capital firm], and Rabobank, the world’s premier ag-focused bank, we are empowered to continue on the path to becoming the [financial technology] leader of the produce industry.”