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Whole Foods Market and Mad Agriculture Launch National Effort to Wild U.S. Farmland

via Business Wire

New biodiversity highway initiative and 2024 Impact Report showcase a bold commitment to promoting more sustainable agriculture and a more resilient food system

Whole Foods Market and Mad Agriculture today announced a transformative collaboration to launch a national biodiversity highway initiative aimed at reconstructing native ecosystems across American farmland. This visionary program, beginning in and around the Lowery Creek Watershed in Wisconsin, seeks to create a connected highway of climate-resilient habitats restoring biodiversity, improving soil and water health, and strengthening the long-term resilience of the food system.

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Whole Foods Market and Mad Agriculture Launch National Effort to Wild U.S. Farmland

Whole Foods Market and Mad Agriculture Launch National Effort to Wild U.S. Farmland

The future of food depends on healthy, functioning ecosystems. Yet America’s farmland is under intense pressure—biodiversity is disappearing, soil health is declining, and the land’s ability to withstand environmental stress is weakening. By linking farms, watersheds, and wild areas, the biodiversity highway will reduce fragmentation, support pollinators and wildlife, and help buffer communities from climate impacts like flooding and erosion.

The program is building a practical model for reconstructing ecosystems in ways that have the potential to improve how the land functions—filtering water, storing carbon, managing pests, reducing erosion, and keeping farmland productive over time. This includes cultivating perennial crops, which stay in the ground over years improving soil health by reducing or eliminating the need for tillage.

“Teaming up with Mad Agriculture represents a meaningful step forward in our commitment to improving ecosystem health and fostering climate resilience,” said Jason Buechel, chief executive officer at Whole Foods Market. “This initiative is about rethinking how we care for the land and support the people who grow our food. As the program expands, it will forge a more connected, resilient landscape — supporting biodiversity and more sustainable farming for generations to come. It’s one of the most exciting efforts we’ve launched this year, and it builds on the momentum and progress outlined in our 2024 Impact Report.”

As part of the initiative, Whole Foods Market has pledged up to $500,000 in matching funds to catalyze $1 million in collective investment from food system stakeholders in 2025. The program aims to cultivate a 1,000 acre biodiversity highway across American farmland and invites Founding Member organizations to co-invest in ecosystem reconstruction efforts that will serve as an example for regenerative agriculture and collaborative supply chain transformation. Companies committed include Applegate, Bob’s Red Mill, The Campbell’s Company, New Belgium Brewing, OLIPOP, UNFI, UNFI Foundation, west~bourne, and Yogi Tea.

“This initiative is laying the groundwork for a new kind of agriculture,” said Omar de Kok-Mercado, Director of Wilding at Mad Agriculture. “The biodiversity highway is a blueprint for the next era of American infrastructure. Not just pipes and roads but living systems that restore function to land. It operationalizes perennial agriculture at scale, connecting ecological health to economic resilience. We’re not restoring the past — we’re engineering the future, one corridor at a time.”

The initiative is a cornerstone of Whole Foods Market’s broader commitment to sustainability, as detailed in its newly released 2024 Impact Report. The report highlights progress across our key focus areas, including:

  • Advancing Regenerative Agriculture: Doubled the number of certified regenerative products to 301, all verified by trusted third-party standards such as Regenerative Organic Certified, Regenified, and Ecological Outcome Verified.
  • Biodiversity Leadership: Ranked the top U.S. retailer for pollinator protection by Friends of the Earth and expanded biodiversity efforts through native prairie restoration and pollinator-friendly sourcing policies.
  • Food Access and Community Giving: Donated over 34.6 million pounds of food – nearly 29 million meals – to more than 1,000 food rescue and redistribution programs across North America.
  • Reducing Emissions in Our Supply Chain: Collaborated with key suppliers, including shrimp and dairy suppliers, to help accelerate their carbon-reduction efforts and mitigate the carbon impact of our supply chain.
  • Reducing Emissions at our Stores: 64 stores with solar installations, 235 stores relying on lower-global warming potential refrigerants, and 389 electric vehicle charging stations across our stores to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions.
  • Impact Through Giving: Invested $14.2 million through the Whole Foods Market Foundation, supporting 1,239 organizations and schools in 39 countries to advance food access, education, and economic opportunity.
  • Responsible Sourcing: Supplied more than $8.8 million in premiums benefitting workers, their communities, and/or the environment through our Sourced for Good program.

“The 2024 Impact Report is a reminder that the products on our shelves represent a story—of people, places, and choices that shape our food system,” said Caitlin Leibert, Vice President of Sustainability at Whole Foods Market. “It reflects the collective effort of farmers, producers, Team Members, and partners who are helping us build something better. Our work with Mad Agriculture is one of the most inspiring examples of that effort – showing what’s possible when we stay rooted in our purpose to nourish people and the planet. We’re proud to be part of something that honors those connections and helps shape a more hopeful future for food.”

Check out the 2024 Impact Report on its new microsite here: wholefoods.com/impact.

This shared vision – spotlighted in the 2024 Impact Report and embodied by the biodiversity corridor initiative with Mad Agriculture – offers a forward-looking blueprint for how the food industry can address ecological challenges through ecosystem restoration and land stewardship. To learn more about Whole Foods Market’s impact, visit www.wholefoodsmarket.com/mission-in-action.

About Whole Foods Market

Founded in 1980, Austin-based Whole Foods Market is the world’s leading natural and organic foods retailer and the first certified organic national grocer in the United States. Part of Amazon’s Worldwide Grocery Stores, Whole Foods Market serves customers in more than 535 stores across the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. To learn more about Whole Foods Market, please visit https://media.wholefoodsmarket.com/.

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