The Bunya Orchards acquisition clears the way for New Forests’ agriculture-focused subsidiary New Agriculture to pursue acquisitions for its debut fund once fundraising is complete.
Fundraising volatility has tested agricultural private credit in recent years, but a heavyweight entrant suggests the strategy is far from sidelined.
The $300m agricultural loan program will expand Homestead’s private credit capability, which it has been building since at least 2022.
Centuria’s head of agriculture says the recently acquired Arrow Primary Infrastructure Fund will provide the firm with diversified agricultural exposure while sharing a focus on controlled environment agriculture with the Centuria Agriculture Fund.
The manager, which has some $7bn in AUM, is now under the sole control of co-founder Adam Waglay.
With one fund already closed and the other just beginning its raise, the two strategies hint at how far market conditions have shifted since the start of the decade.
While investors are buying into the long term prospects, there are still concerns over GP track records and liquidity, according to research from pensions networking company Mallowstreet.
Managing partner John Haugen says strategic investors are pursuing strong returns and a look at what is happening at the cutting edge of the food industry.
Asset-level credits, nature-linked private debt and regulatory markets are all gaining traction – together they reveal a nascent market still searching for scale.
Backed by cornerstone commitments from a UK local government pension scheme and an Australian superfund, Gresham House’s strategy pitches timberland as a mature asset class within natural capital.