Agri-business fund seeks $250 mln for neglected market; Washington, Maine pensions on boardElsewhere in the space:
Taking aim at one of the less-traveled areas of private equity, Agriculture Capital Management is targeting $250 million for a debut fund called ACM Permanent Crops.
ACM plans to invest in permanent cropland, along with related midstream businesses involved in the growing, packaging and marketing of produce on the U.S. West Coast.
The board of Maine Public Employees Retirement System approved a commitment of up to $50 million to the fund subject to due diligence and negotiations, according to the system’s chief investment officer Andrew Sawyer. The Washington State Investment Board approved a commitment of up to $50 million in February to the fund. It is not clear if that commitment officially closed.
As of early August, the fund had collected $124 million, according to a Maine PERS investment memo.
Agribusiness may be one of the last sectors in the world where there aren’t enough private equity funds.
“As emerging markets emerge and become wealthier,” demands around food production are increasing, said The Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein during the firm’s second-quarter earnings call in July. “Agri-business is one of the greatest areas for private equity.”...MORE
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