Carlyle launches global irrigation platform Farmfront Group  

• Farmfront will be led by CEO Daniel Neves
• Carlyle is a global investment firm based in Washington DC
• The firm managed $385 billion of assets as of 30 June

The Carlyle Group has launched Farmfront Group, a global platform of irrigation providers based in Milan.

Farmfront’s formation follows Carlyle’s acquisition of Ocmis Group in 2022 and the recent acquisitions of Irrimec, Otech and RKD, three European irrigation firms.

RKD and Irrimec, which includes Otech in France, will combine with Ocmis. Together, they will operate as a global platform of irrigation providers, according to a release.

Farmfront has six manufacturing sites in Italy, Spain and France and combined turnover of over €200 million in 2022.

“Farmfront Group has been established to provide farmers with the complete irrigation solutions they need,” said Filippo Penatti, MD of the Carlyle Europe Partners advisory team. “By joining these firms together and establishing a coordinated commercial, marketing, and supply platform, we have created a strong runway for growth across the group.”

Farmfront will be led by CEO Daniel Neves.

Carlyle will support Farmfront by implementing operational best practice across the constituent businesses and through M&A, the release said.

Carlyle is a global investment firm with $385 billion of assets under management as of 30 June. It is based in Washington DC.