Permanent Crops

Primewest will use part of the A$60m raised in an institutional placement to make a cornerstone investment in its first agriculture fund.

Investors Mutual, which holds a 3.6% stake in Vitalharvest, has expressed concern about the value of MIRA’s bid for Vitalharvest, alleging a lack of transparency.

Managing director Bill Reiman says covid-19 disruption delayed deal closures but increasing farmer interest in sale/leaseback helped the firm match its 2019 capital spend.

The latest figures from the Australian Farmland Index showed good returns for investors in 2020, only falling slightly from the same period one year earlier.

A trade dispute between China and Australia emerged in 2020, with the latter on the receiving end of threats of import suspensions and tariffs. A report from Rural Bank shows the extent to which each commodity could be affected.

Chief investment officer Jamie Shen says the aftermath of California wildfires has led to a ‘wild ride’ for ag but has given the firm a chance to demonstrate its skill in managing risk.

Bonnefield president and CEO Tom Eisenhauer explains why investors need to commit to ag now, his firm’s reasons for steering clear of an own-and-operate strategy and the impact of covid-19.

PSP head of natural resources Marc Drouin said the pension would look to do more post-farmgate investments in Australia and could work with local funding partners more in future.

The American university’s endowment is selling further assets after offloading almond and cotton farms to Hancock Agricultural Investment Group earlier this year.

The Diversified Agriculture Fund will deploy approximately A$25m across three foundation assets and will move to an open-end structure to continue raising capital.