Investors confident about healthy returns fromm farming

摘要

It is hard to remain ignorant of the increased interest in agriculture by institutional investors, often aiming for comparable rates of return (excluding capital appreciation) to other investment classes. Many family farmers must be scratching their heads as to how these returns shown in Table 1 and Figure 1, can be achieved. In an article in Stock & Land, Ian Verrender encapsulates the problem: "The vagaries of the weather, and gyrating commodity prices have put broadacre dryland cropping and grazing beyond the acceptable risks that most corporations can bear. The corporate farm may be a sophisticated operation, highly mechanised and market-savvy. But a family will work for next to nothing when times are tough and accept dismal returns that a corporation simply cannot tolerate."