Agricultural Transition
(A Micellium partner) Agriterra-group was created to contribute to the acceleration of agricultural transition. The group draws on 15 years of experience gained in agrivoltaics and agricultural production, notably in Réunion. Today, Agriterra continues to support the design of projects and the implementation of energy infrastructure solutions for young farmers they help to establish, whether in market gardening under anti-cyclonic PV greenhouses and shade structures, solutions for arboriculture, large-scale crops and livestock, and soon solutions for viticulture.
Founded in 2023 by Steeve Arcelin and Patrice Lucas, the first company of the Agriterra-group was established in 2011 to operate 25 hectares of agricultural land owned by Akuo in Réunion, based on the intuition of Eric Scotto, Steve Arcelin, and Patrice Lucas that the rise of renewable energy could not occur in conflict with agricultural land use, but rather should develop operational synergies between agricultural operations and a power plant to preserve the natural character of the site and sustain agricultural activity. This marked the beginning of Agrinergie launched by Akuo, which is now adopted worldwide under the term Agrivoltaics. Agriterra was responsible for the engineering design of projects and their infrastructure on the agricultural side, agricultural production plans, their implementation, and long-term operation.
Today, the group is also involved in other aspects of agricultural transition, notably in the transfer of land and knowledge by installing young farmers who commit to converting their land to soil bio-regeneration and agroecology in polyculture, enabling them to acquire land ownership once the operation becomes sustainable.
To support farmers in this conversion, Agriterra has developed a training program in agroecology and its practices with the Agriterra Academy, and a support service for operations through dedicated subsidiaries. It addresses the challenges of food sovereignty and the structuring of innovative sectors by investing alongside these living artisans in the transformation and vertical integration of their value chains to enable them to access greater added value. Finally, it helps them develop additional sustainable income from positive externalities linked to their practices, whether in biodiversity, emission avoidance or carbon sequestration, an integrated water management system, or the enhancement of the site’s energy resources.
The Agriterra group is a recognized player in agricultural transition, a pioneer in agrivoltaics, whose approach is at the heart of sustainable development and has always integrated innovation and the connection to ecology, agriculture, and renewable energies in its thinking and projects. It fully embodies the commitments of Micellium.
Micellium is proud to be a shareholder of Agriterra and to be able to influence its strategy to continue designing meaningful projects with its partners that make a difference and help change paradigms.