# Advancing Eco Agriculture (AEA)

Empowering Farmers through Scalable Regenerative Agriculture Solutions

- Canonical URL: https://wefunder.com/advancingecoag
- Entity ID: wefunder:company:141230
- Last updated: 2026-06-02T05:01:38Z
- Generated at: 2026-06-04T01:18:49Z

## Quick facts
- Trusted by 10,000+ growers across more than 4 million acres globally.
- Recently opened state-of-the-art manufacturing facility to meet growing regen ag product demand.
- Team successfully implemented regen ag systems at scale on intensive farm operations for 17+ years.
- Active in North and South America and parts of Europe, with further expansion in 2024.
- 3M combined views across #1 regenerative agriculture podcast, webinar series, and Youtube channel.
- Targeting a growing $3.6 billion regenerative agriculture systems market.

## Active fundraises
- wefunder:fundraise:94424: 4(a)(6) successful (USD)
- wefunder:fundraise:94425: 4(a)(6) successful (USD)

## Story
Our Existing Food Systems are Broken.Farmers want to grow healthy food, make ends meet, and leave their land better for future generations. However, the contemporary agricultural systems farmers are familiar with (and are sold) don’t produce those outcomes. Instead, our agricultural system is unsustainable and our food systems are broken.We provide expertise and resources to farmers so their crops are more resilient, productive, and profitable.At Advancing Eco Agriculture (AEA), agriculture can be a force for good, both for the environment and for those who rely on it for their livelihoods.Join our transformative journey to regenerate the vitality of the land for future generations.AEA Consultant onsite a farm in CaliforniaHow it all startedOur story begins with John Kempf. In the early 2000s, Amish Farmer John Kempf was on a desperate quest to save his family’s fruit and vegetable farm in Northeast Ohio. After years of intensive pesticide use, pest and disease pressure was unmanageable and unaffected by continued chemical applications resulting in almost total loss three years in a row. John then began renting a field from a neighboring farm and had an “ah-ha” moment. The cantaloupe plants located in soil previously managed with intense pesticides were disease and pest-ridden, while those on the untreated soil were completely healthy. The difference was so pronounced that it launched John into an intense journey to understand why one plant could be resistant to disease when the same plant two feet away is not.Years of extensive agronomy study – combined with mentoring from others and first-hand growing experiences – led Kempf to new crop management methods. The practices he discovered and the products he created transformed once-depleted soils into ecosystems teeming with life and promise. Customer harvesting tomatoes in CaliforniaOur Business ModelFounded in 2006, our team at AEA is dedicated to increasing yields and crop performance while reducing or eliminating the need for pesticides and fertilizers that inhibit natural growing systems. We look beyond symptoms by diagnosing root causes and providing treatments.We have grown our business through a whole-systems approach to revitalizing soil and plant health with: Expert agronomic consulting informed by 17+ years of on-farm experienceEffective biological and nutritional productsCutting-edge plant nutrition technology and analysis toolsPioneering the regenerative agriculture movementTrusted ConsultingYou achieve what you incentivize. If we want to achieve broadscale adoption of regen ag we need to demonstrate immediate economic returns.AEA has the most knowledgeable, trained, and informed agronomy team in the regenerative space. Our team is diverse, impassioned and has demonstrable expertise in a myriad of crop types and regions. On-going support and coaching is offered to farmers through on-site visits and remote consultation that works to address issues both before and as they arise. This close partnership makes timely recommendations based on observations, sap analysis, and data possible throughout the growing season.AEA Consultant onsite with farmer in New MexicoRegenerative Plant NutritionThrough extensive plant sap analysis data, we know that crops experience significant nutritional imbalances limiting their capacity for photosynthesis. Once these nutritional imbalances are corrected, yields and pest resistance immediately increase along with the efficiency of photosynthetic activity, drastically reducing the need for fertilizers and pesticides.To address these plant imbalances, AEA manufactures and sells a range of regenerative agriculture plant nutrition products that are also compliant with organically certified farming. These tools – derived from naturally occurring microorganisms, plant extracts, and humic substances – include biological and nutritional products, microbial fungal inoculants, and liquid micronutrients and macronutrients. Customer using AEA products on his farm in British Colombia, CanadaPlant-Testing TechnologyWe measure soil, irrigation water, and plants extensively, because why guess when you can test?Unlike other contemporary testing methods, monitoring nutrients in plant sap provides in-depth, practical insights into the factors that influence nutrient mobility at different stages of growth. Mineral imbalances can be detected at a cellular level allowing for the precise amount of a needed nutrient to then be applied before a deficiency creates disease or vulnerability. Through plant sap analysis, growers are empowered to make data-driven decisions to proactively solve problems and achieve higher levels of crop quality and yields. Step-by-step plant sap analysis processThought Leadership in the Regenerative Agriculture SpaceAEA creates and distributes educational content to support the growth of the regenerative agriculture movement, including regional field days and events, ongoing webinars led by John Kempf and other AEA agronomy advisors, and the top-rated Regenerative Agriculture Podcast. AEA Consultant onsite at a vineyard in CaliforniaAEA Consultant onsite with a cherry grower in OregonOur ResultsIncrease in crop yield and qualityReduction or total elimination of the need for pesticides and fertilizersIncreased profitabilityTestimonialsConsistent Year Over Year GrowthGrowers often begin testing AEA products and systems on a part of their farm, and then scale to their entire operation over 3-5 years. The growers we currently work with represent an estimated 7 million acres, of which we work on roughly 35%. Many large scale growers we work with are still early on the adoption curve.    Now we are ready to scale our impact. In response to increasing environmental and economic challenges in agriculture, market demand is growing quickly for biological and nutritional products created for regenerative farm management systems.AEA has established itself as a leader in an under-served regenerative plant nutrition market with a 0.5% market share of a potential $3.6 billion dollar regenerative plant nutrition market. AEA estimates only 5% of global farm acres today embrace regenerative practices, with the opportunity of a future addressable market standing at roughly $72 billion.Similarly, the biological product solutions that AEA both manufactures and distributes are a part of a $13 billion dollar market that is growing at an estimated 14% per year. Major traditional chemical companies are making large-scale investment in these inputs, evidence that they also see this as the future of farming. All of which points to this sector representing the most promising segment of the overall $73 billion global market for agriculture product inputs.Sources: USDA, IFOAM, Project Drawdown, Summit Partners, AEA researchNew manufacturing facility now open!Our new Colorado manufacturing plant will allow us to significantly expand our influence from 4 million to 20 million acres. Our goal is to make regenerative agriculture management the mainstream globally by 2040, and we are poised to do so!AEA’s state of the art manufacturing facility opening in Aurora, ColoradoOur Strategic Initiatives and PartnershipsOur continued commitment to innovation is evidenced by our recent investment in Croptix, a precision ag tech platform for in-field early detection of crop health. Croptix allows for faster and simpler assessment of crop health compared to other technologies.We are incredibly proud to unveil Integrity Grown™, a pioneering data-driven standard that is a bold step towards transparency and sustainability in crop cultivation and aims to foster regenerative practices.We have partnered with Citizens of Humanity Group to launch this standard and set the bar high in regenerative cotton. Through strategic partnerships, we are committed to supporting cotton growers on their journey towards regenerative agriculture. By leveraging AEA's expertise and innovative solutions, we aim to address on-farm challenges and drive success within a regenerative framework.We plan to extend this verification standard to additional crops and are focusing on regenerative cotton initially.AEA also believes there is a fundamental gap and need of financing for enabling farmer transition to regenerative practices, as a result of a mainstream financial services system that remains geared towards conventional, extractive, chemical-oriented agriculture.  In this context, we are excited about the success of our ongoing partnership with Steward, a leader in equipping regenerative farmers with the capital they need to grow. AEA has identified the areas of highest growth potential and farmer need to continue developing the most complete product and service offering for driving the regenerative agriculture revolution globally and in the markets we serve.  These areas are:Tech & AI - development of technology tools and systems for our farmer customers, combining machine learning and AI with an enhanced tech stack of software for precision plant nutrition analysis and recommendations.Media - continued investment in our leading regenerative agriculture media and content development, by growing and leveraging existing and new media assets for an ever growing audience of regenerative agriculture farmers and supply chain partners.Lab Services - exploration of investment opportunities in new facilities for agronomic laboratorial analysis, bringing plant sap analysis and related plant health analytics, tools and technologies closer to our farmer customers.Market Expansion - accelerated business development in domestic and international markets, expanding our crop consulting and offering more customized product distribution and blending services, while growing our businesses in Canada, Mexico, Brazil and beyond. R&D - product development for existing and new regenerative plant nutrition applications, enhancing our existing product line, while developing new lines and product categories in the regenerative plant nutrition and biological segments.Partnerships - strategic collaborations with aligned companies and initiatives in the regenerative agriculture space, and along the regenerative agriculture value chain, from the farmer to the end consumer.Team Expansion - ongoing investment in growing our team of leading agronomy and plant nutrition consultants, with an accompanying leadership culture and management support structure.We have the opportunity to change the face of agriculture, revitalize rural communities and our food systems, and transform our planet into the world we know is possible.Join us, as we make regenerative agriculture the farming of the present and the future.

## FAQ
1. **With investments from Ontario/Quebec/BC/Alberta unfortunately not permitted on Wefunder (as a result of our regulators' request) is there an alternative way to joining the crowdfunding?**
   - Hi Matt. Thank you for your question and your interest in this opportunity! Unfortunately, it is not possible for an individual from Ontario/Quebec/BC/Alberta to participate as the Canadian government does not allow the action. Here is a link to the FAQ page for additional clarification: https://help.wefunder.com/legal/304306-can-i-invest-if-i-don-t-live-in-the-united-states?from_search=128551395
2. **How will I be able to eventually sell my shares (far in the future when I retire)**
   - Hi Erin! Good Question. While there is no public market for your investment, you may sell your stake to another investor if they are a family member or an accredited investor during the first year of your investment. After the first year, you may sell your stake to any interested buyer. You will be able to start that process by emailing support@wefunder.com. They will assist you with the documentation needed. Here is a link to the Wefunder FAQ page where you can get more information on the to...
3. **So I have read the material provided, and from what I understand the return on investment is when either AEA offers an IPO or is sold. Is that correct?**
   - Hi Spencer! Good Question. While there is no public market for your investment, you may sell your stake to another investor if they are a family member or an accredited investor during the first year of your investment. After the first year, you may sell your stake to any interested buyer. You will be able to start that process by emailing support@wefunder.com. They will assist you with the documentation needed. Here is a link to the Wefunder FAQ page where you can get more information on the...
4. **Hi, amazing work you're doing and congrats to your success to date. Questions: 1. You have amazing growth and loving your bottomline. But what makes you different/special than your competitors in the space? 2. One of John's quotes is other providers are transaction based, but ...**
   - Hello! Thank you for your kind words. Here are answer to the questions you outlined: 1. I'd direct you back to our Wefunder campaign page for answers -- wefunder.com/advancingecoag 2. John is a part of an Amish community in Ohio where it is a community/cultural expectation that he does not allow pictures of his face to be published, hence the avatar you see associated with him. Again, please take a look at our campaign page to see his role and his story better articulated. Thanks!
5. **Hello! I'm very enthusiastic about this opportunity because I believe in John's vision, but I am new to this sort of investing and I'm trying to understand the fine print. When I look at the financials, it all looks great to me, except I don't understand the need for many loan...**
   - Hi Amanda! Thank you for your enthusiasm and for your question. Many loans have variable interest rates, and interest rates today in general are higher than when these loans were assumed. Businesses require funding for growth and tend to finance this growth from operations, loans (debt) and equity financing (like this community crowdfunding). Most of our loans are to build out new production capacity to meet the growing demand for our regenerative plant nutrients. This community crowdfunding ...

## Team
- John Kempf (Founder and Chief Vision Officer)
- Eric Girdler (Chief Executive Officer)
- Paul Bergman (Executive Chairman)
- Jason Hobson (President)
- Mike Gedeon (Chief Financial Officer)
- Elisabeth Matthews (Chief Sales and Marketing Officer)
- Laura Kavanaugh (Chief Science Officer)
- Philippe Van Den Bossche (Chairman of the Board)
- Aea Investor (founder)

## Q&A
- Q: Hi AEA Team, congratulations on all your success so far. I, along with members of my community (Doriot Venture Club), am interested in investing but have some questions. Thank you in advance for your responses! 1) Your Form C filings say you’re looking to raise a combined total of $10M from RegCF and RegD investors. Does this mean you’re currently raising additional funds off Wefunder? If so, can you provide a status update on how that is going? 2) I like the “whole systems approach” to selling services + products, but don't understand what pricing might look like for your average client. Can you give an example of what your average customer might pay for each of your products/services over the course of a year? 3) I’m sure there’s a huge opportunity to bring farmers into the regenerative fold, but how fast can this happen? And, is your sales model scalable as more farmers adopt regenerative practices? Thank you!
  - A: Hi Dan! Thanks for your interest and your questions. Please see below: 1) Our minimum target raise is $50,044.50, which we surpassed some time ago. Our current target is $2,499,973.00. If we surpass this target in the near future, we would likely adjust the maximum upward, with $10 million being the highest possible target. We are not currently raising additional funds off Wefunder. In addition to our Reg CF raise, we are doing a simultaneous Reg D raise on Wefunder's Capitalize platform under the same offering terms. 2) Our current revenue model is primarily based on product sales, although in the “whole systems approach" a farmer will receive consulting from our agronomy team and laboratory analyses purchased from AEA. Our customer base is very diverse, ranging from small farmers (who may spend a few thousand dollars per year) to larger commercial operations (who spend hundreds of thousands of dollars per year). On-farm investment by a grower also varies significantly by crop type, with specialty crop growers spending upwards of $1500/acre and commodity row crop growers spending in the range of $75-150/acre. 3) We have dedicated over a decade to developing a scalable model that we are confident can meet the growing demand for regenerative agriculture services by continuing to develop and scale our agronomy consulting team, nutrient products, plant analytics and technology tools.
- Q: Congrats on being naked a Top Pick by Kingscrowd. That's huge!
  - A: Thank you Adam!
- Q: Would you be able to provide an update on how the company did in 2024 and future expectations? Thank you for any insights you can provide.
  - A: 2024 was a challenging year across the agriculture space due to increased farmer costs, relatively high interest rates, relatively low commodity prices, and a challenging global trade environment for US growers who have historically serviced markets abroad. Despite these challenges, AEA has continued to strengthen its unique offering of regenerative plant nutrients, agronomic consulting, and data analytics for the growers and markets that we serve.
- Q: What is the price of each share of Advancing Eco Agricultural!@@@@????
  - A: $168.50 per share is the current price under the early bird terms.
- Q: And to clarify for other investors, the primary exit potential is if the company gets sold or if the company IPOs. There are some emerging things that allow people to sell their shares before then. I always look to invest in a company that has an exit as the primary eventual target; fortunately most companies have that goal. I see you have been in business a long time, what is your exit strategy?
  - A: Hi Adam. Thanks for the question! AEA is a mission-oriented company that has as its goal the transformation of agriculture globally. As we continue to implement on our mission, we are confident that our on-farm successes will also drive our business success, which will enable us to continue to grow our impact and our financial results. AEA has raised capital from mission-oriented investors in the past, and we remain committed to that approach in this current community raise on Wefunder. We will seek impact investors into the future, some of whom may be larger and provide an exit pathway for our current investors.
- Q: Hello! I'm very enthusiastic about this opportunity because I believe in John's vision, but I am new to this sort of investing and I'm trying to understand the fine print. When I look at the financials, it all looks great to me, except I don't understand the need for many loans at what I consider high interest rates (6% to 10%). As an individual, I would prioritize paying debt like this off if I had the cash on hand. Is it a different calculus for a business? Since AEA seems to have the cash on hand and it's also raising money in this way, why would AEA keep paying high interest rates on these many loans? (I understand the lower interest vehicle loans.) Thank you for this opportunity and for explaining things to wefunder neophytes!
  - A: Hi Amanda! Thank you for your enthusiasm and for your question. Many loans have variable interest rates, and interest rates today in general are higher than when these loans were assumed. Businesses require funding for growth and tend to finance this growth from operations, loans (debt) and equity financing (like this community crowdfunding). Most of our loans are to build out new production capacity to meet the growing demand for our regenerative plant nutrients. This community crowdfunding is intended to promote growth areas that are outlined in the Help Fuel Our Growth (use of funds) section.
- Q: Anyway I can get my money back out of this thing? John’s embrace of a quack like RFK has me wondering if this is all snake oil. And John’s embrace of an immoral man like Trump has me wondering if I can trust the accounts.
- Q: Hi, any updates on the raise? Greets
  - A: The raise officially closed in April 2024.
- Q: What is limiting AEA’s growth in North America so that you wish to go global as John mentioned in the WeFunder video? The addressable market is much larger than what is currently being reached by AEA in N.A. Is N.A. agriculture too saturated with agribusiness to be receptive to AEA’s regenerative approach?
  - A: We believe in the importance of supporting regeneratively minded growers wherever they may be. Our ability to do that in North America is facilitated significantly by our manufacturing and distribution footprint, and local agronomist presence, but does not prevent us from pursuing our vision of supporting regenerative farmers globally.
- Q: How well does your technology and regenerative methods work in semi-arid conditions?
  - A: Hi Joe. Absolutely! Each region and climate has its unique challenges but the technology and principles behind regenerative agriculture are highly adaptable and can be used in any region or climate.
- Q: May I suggest that you collaborate with or do a partnership with L5 Automation on wefunder.com
  - A: Hi George! Thank you for the suggestion!
- Q: Awesome post!@@@@@@@@
  - A: Thank you!
- Q: Love the vision and the authentic origins for this company. Do you have a path to long term financial sustainability? Editing to add, I see Ag-Tech and market growth are fundamental to the long-term vision. I think Ag-Tech will be coming widely implemented, and like the wisdom of Advancing Eco Agriculture for keeping it holistic. Editing to add a couple of additional questions that came up during our due diligence study group session: 1. can you talk a little about your leases? -- are these leases internal between your subsidiaries, or external -- and to whom? 2. Can you speak to competition (and yes, I understand, legacy farming is your greatest competitor), one of our study group members quickly uncovered Corteva -- I know your plant food is compatible with organic certification, and suspect theirs is not, but how do you protect yourself from their corporate funded growth? Is there any thought to an exit to them? How does your tech investments help you defend your position?
  - A: Hello Michelle. Thanks for the question. Please see below: 1. Our leases are by and large all external, including our Colorado facility, which is our largest lease. We have one smaller lease with a real estate entity that has some shared ownership. For more information, please consult our Form C. 2. Our combined service offering of regenerative plant nutrition consulting, regenerative plant nutrients, and plant nutrition analytics, is unique. Our tech investments will strengthen these pillars of our business. Larger ag companies generally offer conventional plant nutrition products, which tend to have specific functional usages outside of the holistic regenerative plant nutrition system through which we approach our farmer customer relationships. A good example is Steven Cardozo, who was a recent guest on the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast (https://regenerativeagriculturepodcast.com/episodes/episode-105-moving-from-organic-to-regenerative-management-with-steven-cardoza/). At AEA, we also work directly with most of our growers, whereas larger conventional agriculture companies tend to rely more heavily on sales through distribution, which makes it harder for them to provide the technical expertise that our growers most value from our team. We are open to working with larger conventional agriculture companies as they seek to transition to a more holistic systems-based approach to agriculture, and we expect that more of these types of partnership opportunities will arise in the years to come.
- Q: Is your technology patentable? How is it protected from competitors?
  - A: Hi Michael! Thanks for the question! AEA offers a holistic system of uniquely formulated products, regenerative agronomy consulting, plant nutrition analytics and education materials. This systems approach is what makes AEA unique to farmers and among our competitors. Our patent protection is most relevant in the context of our partnership with Croptix, who hold multiple patents through their sensor technology.
- Q: Hello Elisabeth, I have invested with the early bird round and am very excited for the future of AEA. Regarding the investor perks, can you shed any light on the timeline we'll be receiving items as well as how we go about making elections or appointments for the consultation or farm stay? Thank you!!
  - A: Hi Patrick! We are planning to do all allocations of the investor perks at the end of the raise. We will be working with Wefunder to review investor preferences, including the farm stay option. You can look forward to further communication on this topic towards the end of the campaign.