Field Notes: Fiera Comox forestry fund makes first investment; small firms to feel the heat of Australia’s climate reporting

Fiera Comox Partners Global Sustainable Timberland Strategy marks first investment with New Zealand JV; Canada’s Tall Grass Ventures hits C$32m final close; climate disclosure requirements for Australia’s large businesses will soon impact smaller firms; and more. Welcome to Field Notes, the start-of-the-week briefing from Agri Investor.

Tips and feedback to Binyamin Ali or email [email protected] .

First look

Fiera Comox Partners takes majority stake in forestry JV

Canadian fund manager Fiera Comox has taken an 85 percent interest in a joint venture with Ngāi Tahu Holdings Corporation for a 45,500ha forestry portfolio. Financial details were undisclosed.

The deal marks the first acquisition from Fiera Comox’s Global Sustainable Timberland Strategy. The firm did not disclose any details about the fund’s size or its structure.

Ngāi Tahu Holdings is the holding company for the Ngāi Tahu iwi, which is a large tribe in New Zealand. Real story in full....

They said it

“I think employees will have an opportunity that they didn’t have in the past to exercise their free will and move around and compete”

Founder and CEO of Eastward Partners Joe Carbone expects salaries to increase in private markets in response to an April ban on non-compete agreements, which could come into effect in September if a legal challenge is defeated.

Fund watch

Tall Grass Ventures hits C$32m final close

Canadian venture capital firm Tall Grass Ventures has closed its oversubscribed Fund I on C$32 million ($23 million; €21 million). Read story in full

Automation

Agtech gamechanger

Autonomous farming machines are likely to be a gamechanger for those involved in large-scale row cropping – but the path to large-scale adoption is likely to be slow.

That’s the finding of a new report from Rabobank , titled Agtech in Focus, which examined the state of play for new agricultural technologies and how they can help farmers. Read more

To read this week's Field Notes in full and more, head over to Agri Investor