Field Notes: Climate buyers skew NCREIF forestry benchmark; Mitsui and Nomura back New Forests vehicle; US becomes net food importer
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Global coverage of the deals, firms and people driving agri-business today
Climate buyers skew NCREIF forestry benchmark; Mitsui and Nomura back New Forests vehicle; US becomes a net food importer; Cibus and Aqua Capital exit portfolio companies and more. Welcome to Field Notes, the start-of-the-week briefing.
Tips & feedback to Binyamin Ali or email: [email protected]
First look
Climate buyers skew NCREIF forestry benchmark
Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management 's ( MassPRIM) director of real estate and timberland Tim Schlitzer said the pension’s timber portfolio underperformed the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries (NCREIF) benchmark due to a large climate mitigation focused transaction.
According to minutes from the May meeting of the Real Estate and Timber Committee, Schlitzer said the ongoing adjustment among timber appraisers to climate-derived demand is among factors adding “noise” to the NCREIF benchmark, which the $96 billion pension uses to measure performance of its timberland investments.
They said it
“We often now see policy processes that don’t have a voice from the forestry sector at the table, so you end up with different groups – NGOs, governments, technical organizations – wrangling over rules without the people who have to implement them actually at the table”
David Brand, chairman of New Forests and the new International Sustainable Forestry Coalition , discusses why the ISFC is needed to unify the forestry sector’s voice.
Trade
US becomes net food importer for only second time in 55 years.
Fresh fruit and vegetable imports driven by changes in cost and consumer preference made the US a net food importer over the past year for just the second time in 55 years, according to Farmer Mac’s quarterly economic overview, The Feed.
The report cited consumer preference for greater fresh produce availability, lower production costs in competing countries and the sharp appreciation of the dollar between 2020 and 2022 as some of the biggest reasons why imports have become more favorable.
“The growth of these imports has led to significant challenges for some domestic growers while creating opportunities for others,” said the report. “Overall, farmers that embrace and adapt to shifts in where produce is grown could be more likely to thrive in the long-term.”
Subtitled Charting Global Trade Winds, the report also includes an overview of challenges and opportunities in the aftermath of a 23 percent surge in...
LP commitment
Mitsui and Nomura back New Forests Asia
Japanese conglomerate Mitsui & Co., Ltd. and financial services group Nomura have each made commitments of an undisclosed size to New Forests Asia’s Tropical Asia Forest Fund II.
The vehicle had raised $120 million against a $300 million target prior to the commitments, according to Agri Investor's database. Read more here...
Regenerative ag
?Regenerative ag has innumerate outcomes
Agricultural non-profit research center Rothamsted Research has published the initial results of a multi-year regenerative farming study that shows practices used to avoid tilling and fertilizer use is a complex balancing act with many possible outcomes.
Rothamsted began its study in two contrasting sites in the UK in 2017 and 2018 to understand the impact of different cropping systems on crop yield.
The study focused on the four management factors of (1) phased rotations; (2) cultivation – conventional vs reduced tillage; (3) nutrition – additional organic amendment vs standard mineral fertilization; and (4) crop protection – conventional vs smart crop protection to arrive at 24 emergent cropping systems at each site.
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“Reduced tillage resulted in lower wheat yields but the effect varied with rotation, previous crop and site,” said the report.
“Organic amendments significantly increased spring barley yield by 8 percent on average though the effect again varied with site. The plowed cropping systems tended to produce higher caloric yield overall than systems under reduced tillage.”
Deals
Climate Asset Management inks first Australia deal
Climate Asset Management has acquired approximately 1,800ha of farmland in the Bundaberg region of Queensland, which was formerly used for high-intensity sugar cane production and will be converted it into a macadamia orchard.
The transaction marks the HSBC and Pollination JV’s first acquisition in Australia. Financial details were undisclosed.
CAM made the investment through its Natural Capital Strategy, which is a closed-end fund with a fundraising target of $1 billion. It is the fund’s third deal, following investments in almonds in Spain and in almonds and olives in Portugal.
Cibus exits Innoliva to Feira Comox
Fiera Comox Partners has acquired Spanish extra virgin olive oil business Innoliva Group from Cibus Capital . Financial details were undisclosed.
Aqua Capital and GIC exit Biotrop in €532 million deal
Sao Paulo-headquartered Aqua Capital has exited its investment in Brazilian biological inputs provider Biotrop through a €532 million sale to Belgian crop protection firm Biobest. Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC has also sold its stake in the business as part of the deal.
The deal features a two-stage close with Biobest first acquiring an 85 percent stake in Biotrop, which is expected to complete by the end of the year. The company will acquire the remaining 15 percent stake following a three-year transition period.
VC fundraising
Phycom, a Dutch microalgae start-up, has raised €9 million in a funding round backed by Corbion, Phase2.earth, Invest-NL and Invest International.
Eat Just, Inc. , a California-based alterative protein company, raised a funding round of an undisclosed size led by VegInvest/Ahimsa Foundation.
ViAqua Therapeutics Ltd. , an Israeli aquaculture diseases prevention company, raised $8.25 million in a funding round led by S2G Ventures with participation from Rabo Ventures, The Trendlines Group, Agriline Limited, Nutreco, I-Lab Angels and Circle Investments.
Momofuku Goods, a New York-based provider of “restaurant-grade” pantry essentials, raised $11.5 million in a funding round led by Alliance Consumer Growth with participation from Siddhi Capital.
SkinnyDipped , a Washington-based healthy snacks company, raised $12 million in Series A funding round led by entrepreneur David Grutman, with participation from dozens of individual investors.
Opna, a British carbon projects financing platform, raised $6.5 million in a seed funding round led by Atomi, with participation from previous investors like Pale Blue Dot, MCJ Collective, Angelinvest and Tiny VC.
Also in the news...
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