Giving Compass' Take:

• The nation's first impact investing fund called The Social Venture Fund just invested in Six Foods, an insect-based food organization focused on food system sustainability. 

• How would our environment change if everyone adopted an insect-based diet? How would climate change be impacted?

• Read about the impact of food sustainability in the TEEBAgriFood Report.

The Social Venture Fund, the nation’s first student-led impact investing fund, based in the Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business announced that it has invested in Six Foods, an insect-based food company headquartered in San Francisco. Six Foods will be using the investment to hire a director of sales and expand their advocacy training program, which teaches students who are passionate about food systems and sustainability how to speak to the broader community about the current food system and create events to engage more people in solutions for food sustainability.

When the average American thinks of protein, they often think of meat—but that’s not necessarily the case for nearly two billion people around the world who include insects in their diet. In addition to being nutritious, insects are more sustainable: it takes about a gallon of water to produce one pound of insect protein, as compared to two thousand gallons of water to produce one pound of beef.

“If there will be a move toward insect-based proteins, this is the company that will do it,” said Sahar Omrani, MBA ’18, director of investments at the Social Venture Fund.

“Impact means something different to everyone, depending on your industry—but it’s definitely becoming a more common part of the conversation,” Omrani said. “Even traditional investment funds are figuring out how to measure both impact and positive returns. We’re seeing our understanding of the impact investment landscape evolving. Working on the Social Venture Fund has given us a front-row seat to that, as well as equipping us with some of the best learning experiences of our careers.”

Read the full article about impact investing by Api Podder at My Social Good News