LV digital GmbH acquires stake in green account GmbH – close partnership for biodiversity and business in agriculture

The environmental tech start-up green accountand LV digital are joining forces. To this end, Landwirtschaftsverlag Münster has invested a single-digit million euro sum in green account through its digital subsidiary LV digital. Alongside other minority shareholders, LV digital is now the company's strategic investor.

green account is a young company based in Bielefeld and operator of kompensationsmarkt.de – Germany's leading digital marketplace for nature conservation-approved compensation and replacement measures. The company has set itself the task of using its platform to make ecosystem services in agriculture measurable, traceable, and economically viable in order to realize investments in the preservation and expansion of nature's services. Using scientifically sound methods and digital solutions, green account enables agricultural businesses to plan and document biodiversity measures and, for example, to market them quickly and easily using the “currency” of eco-points when brokering compensation and replacement areas. This allows project developers to invest directly and transparently in high-quality nature conservation measures within the framework of impact regulation, and companies to do so in line with their sustainability strategy, while farmers gain the opportunity to earn additional income through the sale of eco-points.

Marco Laukötter, Managing Director of LV digital GmbH, explains: “We are delighted to be working with green account to help make nature conservation a viable business model in agriculture by supporting farmers in tapping into additional, alternative sources of income via green account – in line with sustainable land management and in such a way that the land remains in the ownership of the farmers.”

Max von Sandrart, Co-founder and managing director of green account adds: 'With LV digital and the Landwirtschaftsverlag group behind it, we are not only gaining a strong investor, but also the best possible partner for us, one that enjoys great trust in agricultural practice. Our common goal is to make nature's contributions visible. We want to integrate climate protection and biodiversity into land management in the best possible way with the economic interests of farmers and reward them fairly.'

By investing in green account, LV digital is expanding its commitment to forward-looking, practical solutions in the agricultural sector. In addition to financial resources, the company contributes the extensive network of the entire group, expertise in digital product development, and access to the agricultural target group.

About green account's business model:

The business model is based on a legally established market mechanism: anyone who seals land or interferes with nature in Germany must compensate for this interference in accordance with the Federal Nature Conservation Act. This usually happens on agricultural and forestry land, which has often been permanently lost to its previous owners. green account takes a different approach: the land—e.g., low-yield and difficult-to-cultivate plots—remains the property of the farmers and is specifically upgraded ecologically through measures recognized by nature conservation experts. Farmers receive long-term compensation for these services. green account ensures that investors who are required to compensate and farmers who want to make land available can find each other easily, quickly, and pragmatically. Responsible and efficient use of land plays a major role for green account, as demand for scarce land has been rising for years, especially in densely populated areas. 'Preserving the natural balance and organizing this goal as efficiently and market-oriented as possible is becoming increasingly important politically—for example, at the EU level. green account contributes to this. We invite all organizations that are also committed to these goals to work with us. This applies in particular to the cultural landscape foundations of the farmers' associations. We have already developed a joint opportunity paper on this with the Westphalian Foundation for Cultural Landscape,' explains Trutz von der Trenck, co-founder and managing director of green account, outlining the strategy.

About LV digital GmbH

LV digital GmbH, based in Münster, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Landwirtschaftsverlag GmbH, one of Germany's ten fastest-growing specialist publishers in terms of revenue and growth and the leading media company for agriculture and rural areas. LV digital currently employs around 75 people and is rapidly developing digital products, platforms, and business models for the agricultural sector.

About green account

green account is an environmental tech start-up based in Bielefeld that offers digital solutions for recording, evaluating, and marketing ecosystem services. The aim is to open up economic prospects for landowners for their environmental services while enabling companies to access credible, regional investment and compensation measures. In doing so, green account is making an important contribution to the transformation of agriculture and nature conservation and providing a business model for biodiversity.

Contact details LV digital:
Marco Laukötter
Managing director
LV digital GmbH
+49 2501 8012900
marco.laukoetter@lvdigital.de
www.lvdigital.de

Contact details green account:
Max von Sandrart
Managing director
green account GmbH
+49 521 30580900
sandrart@greenaccount.com
www.greenaccount.com

Trutz von der Trenck
Managing director
green account GmbH
+49 521 30580900
trenck@greenaccount.com
www.greenaccount.com