The world's first non-crypto, non-currency supporting organic farmers and local food.
Beetcoin and the Slow Money Movement
Since 2010, more than $80 million has flowed to over 800 organic farms and local food enterprises via volunteer-led efforts in dozens of communities. Tens of thousands of folks have attended our events, local and national. And now there’s Beetcoin: your way to chip in, no matter where you live.
A generation from now, I think we are going to look back on these first Slow Money events as seminal.
Nancy Thellman
County Commissioner, Douglas County, KS
Slow Money is one of the keys to a healthy future.
Bill McKibben
Founder, 350.org
Farmers and Entrepreneurs
Here are examples of the small organic farms and local food businesses that we've helped fund so far.
Bauman’s Cedar Valley Farms
Location
GARNETT, KS
Loan amount
$240,000
Vanguard Ranch
Location
GORDONSVILLE, VA
Loan amount
$18,000
Maine Grains
Location
SKOWHEGAN, ME
Loan amount
$50,000
Community Grains
Location
Oakland, CA
Loan amount
$400,000
Lone Tree Foods
Location
Omaha, NE
Loan amount
$10,000
Maui Breadfruit Company
Location
Kahului, HI
Loan amount
$10,000
Ollin Farms
Location
Longmont, CO
Loan amount
$12,000
Richardson Farms
Location
Rockdale, TX
Loan amount
$97,000
Sustainable Iowa Land Trust
Location
West Branch, IA
Loan amount
$240,000
Two Roots Farm
Location
Basalt, CO
Loan amount
$42,000
Boulted Bread
Location
Raleigh, NC
Loan amount
$22,000
Our Table Cooperative
Location
Sherwood, OR
Loan amount
$800,000
Local 0% Loan Groups
The first 0% loan groups are in Colorado and Virginia. Others are in the works in the U.S. and abroad. Beetcoin enables these groups to grow and new groups to form.
2Forks Club
2Forks Club, the first slow money 0% loan group, is based in Aspen, CO and lends in the Roaring Fork Valley and along the North Fork of the Gunnison River. It has 130 members and has made 33 loans totaling $665,000. “Receiving that 0% slow money loan was a critical piece in the foundation of my farm,” remarks Harper Kaufman of Two Roots Farm in Basalt, CO. “I now have a thriving small farm producing regenerative food for our community.”
Slow Money Four Corners
Slow Money Four Corners (Durango, CO) has [40] members and has made 8 loans totaling almost $60,000. “[This community engagement is wonderful],” observes Linley Dixon of Adobe House Farm, recipient of the first of the group’s loans. “[Together, we are strengthening the local food system and enhancing our resilience].”
SOIL Boulder
SOIL Boulder has over $500,000 in contributions from more than 115 members and has made 19 loans totaling over $300,000. “We’re not only building an innovative source of funding for local farmers. We’re connecting community members to farmers, to the land and to one another. This is hopeful on so many levels,” says Brian Coppom, Executive Director of Boulder County Farmers Markets.
SOIL Sangre de Cristo
SOIL Sangre de Cristo (Salida, CO) with 67 members, has made 3 loans, totaling $20,000, all to women-owned farms and ranches in the South Central region of Colorado. “With our 0% loan, we made a number of improvements that enable us to provide the market with with local, fresh, nutritious vegetables,” explains Tiffany Colette of Rocky Mountain Garlic.
Virginia Foodshed Capital
Virginia Foodshed Capital’s SOIL Fund (Charlottesville, VA) has made thirty-one (31) 0% loans totaling $265,000. 78% of these have been to minority-owned or women-owned farms. “We believe in nurture capital,” says founder Michael Reilly. “We’re dedicated to equity and fairness, environmental stewardship and building relationships for long-term health.”
This is what an earthshot looks like.
Today’s crises drive new demands for structural reform. It’s tempting to assume that the change we need can only be achieved at sufficient speed and scale from the top down. But there are some things that venture capital moonshots just cannot do.
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50 Years From Now
As the saying goes, the best time to plant a tree was 50 years ago, and the next best time is today. What’s this got to do with Beetcoin? 50 years from now we want to see a widespread network of local groups around the world making 0% loans. It’s not rocket science, but it’s going to take some doing.
Beetcoin. Your way to chip in, no matter where you live.