USDA launched a new private investment fund with the potential to inject $100 million into growth-oriented, small businesses across rural America. The McLarty Capital Partners (MCP) Rural Business Investment Company (RBIC) will be the fifth RBIC that USDA has helped to initiate since 2014.

"Innovative small businesses throughout rural America need the same access to capital as their urban business counterparts," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "McLarty Capital Partners is an important ally in USDA's efforts to reenergize the rural economy, help small businesses grow and strengthen local communities."

McLarty Capital Partners, founded in 2012 by co-presidents Franklin McLarty and Christopher Smith, provides flexible financing solutions to small and medium sized enterprises in the United States. (Photo: Zoonar O. Kovach/Thinkstock)

"We are pleased to partner with USDA in this innovative public-private partnership to propel and sustain small business growth in rural America," said McLarty Capital Partners co-founder, Franklin McLarty. "With roots in America's heartland, McLarty Capital Partners is committed to ensuring that small and medium sized enterprises have the means necessary to achieve their business goals, and this endeavor only furthers that mission."

McLarty Capital Partners, founded in 2012 by co-presidents Franklin McLarty and Christopher Smith, provides flexible financing solutions to small and medium sized enterprises in the United States. MCP Rural Investment Fund will invest in this sector of the U.S. economy with the goal of ensuring that businesses located in smaller communities throughout the nation have access to the capital needed to realize their goals.

The new fund announced was formed under the USDA's Rural Business Investment Program (RBIP). USDA is utilizing RBIP to license funds that invest in enterprises creating growth and job opportunities in rural areas, with an emphasis on smaller enterprises. In 2014, Advantage Capital was granted a license for their $154 million Advantage Capital AgriBusiness Partners fund. The fund is making private equity investments in innovative agriculture-related businesses that support USDA's strategy for economic growth, including bio-manufacturing, local and regional food systems, advanced farming technologies and other cutting-edge fields. Since its inception in 2014, the fund has made a total of 11 investments, totaling $39 million. Secretary Vilsack has also announced the conditional approval of other RBICs: Innova Ag Innovation and Meritus Kirchner Ventures in April 2015; and in April 2016, the Open Prairie Rural Opportunities Fund. Additional funds are currently under review.

These efforts are part of the Made in Rural America initiative, which was created by President Obama to help rural businesses and leaders take advantage of new investment opportunities and access new markets abroad.

Source: USDA