One of the largest super funds in Australia will be investing $200 million to use underutilised agricultural land in northern Victoria and the NSW Riverina and turn it into horticultural farming projects.
Qantas Super will add to a $150 million investments for GO.FARM assets Riverina Trust, Griffith, NSW and Sandmount Farms, Katunga, in an effort to convert more than 5,000 hectares of land with substantial water holdings into high yielding, water efficient horticultural crops.
GO.FARM is the country's largest producer of field tomatoes and also produces almonds, farm grains, oilseeds, pulses, citrus and wine grapes.
The agricultural investment company has more than $1 billion in assets under management and currently invests $100 million of its own capital into agricultural projects.
GO.FARM chief executive Liam Lenaghan said the sector was "set to drive returns through investments in productivity via AgTech, data analysis and transformational practice change."
"The sector has a low correlation to other assets classes and has historically performed well in periods of high inflation.
"It has attractive, risk-adjusted returns on land value and water, with farmland having a 20-year compound annual growth rate of 8.5 per cent and water entitlements a 15-year compound annual growth rate of 6.7 per cent."
Qantas Super chief investment officer Andrew Spence said the fund already had confidence in GO.FARM as an agriculture manager, but the investment showed the current potential of the Australian agricultural sector.
He said the investment "aligns with these objectives, providing access to high quality investment opportunities that offer strong long-term returns."
"As agriculture specialists GO.FARM has a clear plan to drive productivity gains, responsible agricultural practices and generate returns for investors."
Sandmount Farms includes a 445 hectare almond orchard and a 71 hectare mandarin orchard, while Riverina Trust incorporates irrigated farming.
