South African-based investor Fedgroup has carved a niche for itself by doing things its own way. The company's approach prioritizes long-term sustainability ahead of short-term profit. Investing in South African agriculture provides not only crucial resources needed in farming to run sustainable operations but also provides the additional benefit and advantage of investing in local communities. Amongst others, Fedgroup has partnered with CAN-Agri, a hybrid vertical farm producer based in Pretoria, South Africa.
The company's main focus at the moment is in permanent crop operations, such as fruit and berry orchards, as well as farms that produce high-value commodities, or commodities with high global demand. If the company is looking at expansion funding for an orchard then its involvement can be anywhere from seven years or more; they have agreements with some farmers that span 25 years.
The investor's strategy is not short-term in terms of how it deploys capital in the agriculture sector. As agriculture is inherently a longer-term play, it expects to be involved over the long term. A lot of the time it takes a while for orchard trees to reach maturity and generate an income.
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