PARTNER CONTENT
Aqua Capital is a private equity firm managing investments in sustainable businesses across the Agribusiness & Food value chain. Founded in 2009, Aqua has raised over $1bn in capital, deploying it across 45 sector-disrupting companies, including those in technology and innovation, sustainability, and globalisation. Having recently been named Private Equity Wire’s ESG Fund of the Year: Growth Equity A and Corporate Sustainability Strategy of the Year: Portfolio Company, managing partner Sebastian Popik shares what sustainability means at the thesis-driven firm…
How is your firms ESG integration journey going?
ESG and impact is one of the core pillars of our value creation proposition, and we have created a top-notch agenda throughout the years. So much so, that Aqua has received many accolades, such as being third-party verified against the Impact Principles with outstanding results, obtaining a five-star performance from the UN PRI, and our Fund II being considered the best in Latam and the top five globally by KFW DEG – according to their development effectiveness rating in 2023. Our portfolio companies also have top ESG related certifications and ratings.
However, although we have a very structured agenda, there is always room for improvement.
Today we are mitigating risks, implementing projects, assessing our contributions to SDGs, and working on how we can better connect our positive impacts to national commitments to global challenges – better identifying how we are indeed moving the needle.
What steps are you taking to ensure ESG levers are being implemented within portfolio companies?
We work very closely with our portfolio companies, not only monitoring the action plans and KPIs, but focusing more on a supportive approach, getting our hands dirty by engaging leadership, providing guidance, technical assistance, training sessions, and so on.
We are very focused on double materiality and on potentialising the sustainability outcomes related to the companies’ core business.
SoluBio, for instance, is a company in which sustainability is embedded in its culture. The company produces on-farm biological ag inputs that unlock possibilities for more sustainable and regenerative agriculture with inclusive economies – generating a positive impact on society and the planet.
Additionally, SoluBio adopts the best ESG standards, being B-Corp certified, signatory to the UN Global Compact, and internationally recognised by Solar Impulse Foundation, among others.
How do you promote diversity and inclusion within your firm and portfolio?
Having a healthy, diverse, and inclusive workplace brings several benefits to a company.
We have joint programmes across Aqua Capital and our portfolio, such as ‘Women in Finance’ which is a female career acceleration plan, and our racial diversity internship programme. We also incentivise companies to develop their own programmes.
Additionally, we monitor over 20 DEI-related KPIs biannually and assess the maturity of the agenda within the portfolio using The Women’s Empowerment Principles gap analysis tool.
SoluBio believes that a diverse team drives success, and today 49% of the leadership positions are held by women and one of the few ag companies with a woman as CEO. The company is certified by Great Place to Work, signatory to the Women’s Empowerment Principles, and adhered to the They Lead 2030 Movement, which seeks gender equality among leadership, alongside carrying out professional development programs.
What strategies or initiatives do you have in place to promote environmental sustainability within your firm and portfolio?
At Aqua Capital, we help companies identify and implement bottom-line environmental projects, including, among others, renewable energy, waste management, and fuel switch. Over the past three years, these initiatives have generated over $4.5m in annual savings.
But our main environmental benefits stem from our products and practices – in 2023, we avoided 30 million tons of carbon emissions due to these products and practices.
SoluBio’s biological products promote plant growth and better stress resistance, improve the soil’s physical, chemical, and biological aspects, promote nutrient and nitrogen fixation, and increase carbon capture.
As it is an on-farm solution, there is a 90% reduction of carbon emissions from transport compared to industrially produced products, considering the same route. This also resulted in the reduction of 3.8k tonnes of plastic, 1.5k tonnes of paper and 2.6k tonnes of CO2 in 2023.
Additionally, the company uses solar energy and has water harvesting systems at the factory.
Sebastian Popik, Managing Partner Aqua Capital – Sebastian has over eighteen years of agribusiness private equity experience, fourteen of which have been spent at Aqua Capital, where he heads the firm, its Investment Committee, and sits on the Board of several portfolio companies. Formerly, he was Managing Director of Pampa Capital, a $365m South American Agribusiness private equity buyout fund, and CEO of Salutia, a technology firm based in Brazil and Argentina. Sebastian earned a Master’s in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School and a BA in Economics from Universidad de San Andrés.
