Berkshire Pension Fund commits £30M to Milltrust International’s New Zealand and Australia Buy & Lease Farmland Funds
Milltrust International has announced that The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead (RBWM), on behalf of the UK’s Berkshire Pension Fund, has committed £30 million to the Milltrust Agricultural Investments New Zealand and Australia Buy & Lease Farmland funds.
The funds will acquire cashflow-positive farms and farmland assets, including permanent crops, arable, and pastoral farmland, and lease to experienced operators across the focused geographical regions of Australia and New Zealand with the goal of generating annual lease income of between 5% and 6%with an additional expected (real) annual capital appreciation of at least 5%.
The “Buy & Lease” farmland fund strategy, which was developed in the form of a regulated Irish domiciled collective vehicle (ICAV), will be managed by Milltrust Agricultural Investments to provide contractually guaranteed rental yields in addition to gains from appreciation in land value.
"Milltrust is delighted to announce our appointment as advisors to Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead on behalf of Berkshire Pension Fund, one of the larger Local Government Pension Schemes in the United Kingdom,” said Griff Williams, CIO of Milltrust Agricultural Investments.
Following a comprehensive due diligence review, RBWM noted Milltrust’s depth of industry experience and local networks as well as the focus on the selection of high quality assets and reputable lessee operators that meet the highest standards of ESG and management practices.
”Investment in Agriculture as an asset class can provide significant benefits including income generation, inflation protection and exposure to the very real themes of global food demand and land scarcity,” said Williams. “RBWM has shown leadership in allocating to this asset class and Milltrust looks forward to deploying its collective expertise and disciplined investment process to manage the assets.”
Founded in 2010 by Simon Hopkins, and with offices on five continents, Milltrust International is co-headquartered in London and Singapore. The group’s “Buy-to-Lease” strategy is led by the Investment Committee comprised of Griff Williams, CIO Milltrust Agricultural Investments, Simon Hopkins, CEO, Milltrust International, and Mark Ebert, Chairman of the Milltrust International Managed Investments ICAV. The Advisory Board members include Elders director, James Jackson, CEO of Australian Rural Capital, and Simon Bentley, CEO of Commoditia and formerly head of research at Invenio, Olam Group.
For further information please contact:
Griff Williams, CIO, Milltrust Agricultural Investments ?+44(0)203 4273443/ ?+44(0)77884219
Simon Hopkins, CEO Milltrust international Group ?+65 96693186
