Whole Foods Market and Mad Agriculture have launched a landmark initiative to reconstruct native ecosystems across American farmland, beginning in the Lowery Creek Watershed in Wisconsin. The “biodiversity highway” aims to create connected corridors of climate-resilient habitats that restore biodiversity, strengthen soil and water health, and increase the resilience of the U.S. food system.
“Teaming up with Mad Agriculture represents a meaningful step forward in our commitment to improving ecosystem health and fostering climate resilience,” said Jason Buechel, CEO of Whole Foods Market, in a July 2025 press release. “This initiative is about rethinking how we care for the land and support the people who grow our food.”
The program is designed to link farms, watersheds, and wild areas in a connected landscape that reduces ecosystem fragmentation and supports pollinators and wildlife. Central to the strategy is the adoption of perennial crops that improve soil health and reduce the need for tillage—helping farmland better manage pests, reduce erosion, and store carbon.
“This initiative is laying the groundwork for a new kind of agriculture,” said Omar de Kok-Mercado, Director of Wilding at Mad Agriculture. “We’re not restoring the past — we’re engineering the future, one corridor at a time.”
Backed by up to $500,000 in matching funds from Whole Foods, the program aims to raise $1 million in collective investment from food system stakeholders in 2025 to establish a 1,000-acre biodiversity corridor. Founding members include Bob’s Red Mill, Applegate, OLIPOP, UNFI, New Belgium Brewing, Yogi Tea, and others.
This initiative builds on Whole Foods Market’s longstanding commitment to regenerative agriculture and ecological stewardship. Over the past decade, the company has taken steps to integrate biodiversity and sustainability into its operations, including:
“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. “Our work with Mad Agriculture is one of the most inspiring examples of that effort.”
The biodiversity highway is positioned not just as an environmental initiative, but as a reimagining of national infrastructure—where restoration and resilience replace extraction and fragmentation. For Whole Foods, it marks one of the most ambitious efforts yet to integrate ecological health into its supply chain strategy.
As the project scales beyond Wisconsin, it may become a template for broader supply chain collaborations centered on regenerative agriculture and long-term resilience.
