San Francisco-based Farmland LP, an investment fund that generates returns by converting conventional farmland to organic farmland, has announced the closing of Vital Farmland REIT LLC, according to a news release.
The fund raised more than $130 million in equity capital from family offices, institutional and accredited individual investors and clients of numerous Registered Investment Advisors, according to the release.
Vital Farmland REIT LLC is Farmland LP’s second fund since the firm’s inception in 2009, and the proceeds will be used to continue to invest in high value-add projects on its farms in Oregon and Washington, the release said.
“Farmland values in the U.S. reached record levels last year, and demand for organic produce continues to rise,” Craig Wichner, CEO of Farmland LP, said in the release. “With these favorable dynamics, investor interest in organic and regenerative farming is increasing, as demonstrated by the strong response to our second fund. In today’s investment climate, with rising inflation and volatility in equity markets, U.S. farmland offers investors consistent, stable and non-correlated returns.
Many investors in the company’s new fund have an Environmental, Social, and Governance orientation, Wichner said in the release.
“Our regenerative farming practices and adherence to Certified Organic standards give investors the assurance that their capital is having a real impact rather than greenwashing the most environmentally destructive practices in agriculture,” he said.
