You may not see yourself as a farmer but that doesn’t have to stop you from investing in farmland. Crowdfunding through farmland investing platforms can help you buy farmland to add diversification to your investment portfolio.
As an alternative asset, farmland can provide an investor several benefits, including passive income, a hedge against inflation and tax breaks. If you’re ready to buy farmland, here are the best farmland investing platforms.
Quick Look: Best Farmland Investing Platforms
- Best for Variety of Available Farmland: AcreTrader
- Best for Range of Investment Products: FarmTogether
- Best for Non-Accredited Investors: Steward
- Best for Range of Agriculture Investments: Harvest Returns
- Best for Investing in International Farmland: Farmfolio
Best Farmland Investing Platforms
Farmland investing platforms allow you to reap the benefits of owning farmland without the hassles of managing the farm. They open investing in farmland to a broader range of investors. Consider these farmland investing platforms:
1. Best for Variety of Available Farmland: AcreTrader
Carter Malloy, who grew up in an Arkansas farming family and was part of an equity investment firm in San Francisco, California, founded AcreTrader in 2018. AcreTrader is headquartered in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Why We Picked It: Well-funded, popular and easy to use, AcreTrader offers a variety of farmland to invest in, including row crops, permanent crops, timberland and international farmland. Investing is open only to accredited investors with a net worth of $1 million or an annual income of $200,000.
2. Best for Range of Investment Products: FarmTogether
- Best For:Long-Term Farmland InvestmentsVIEW PROS & CONS:securely through FarmTogether's website
Headquartered in San Francisco, California, FarmTogether was founded by Artem Milinchuck in 2017. Milinchuck has more than 10 years of financial experience in farmland, agriculture and food and he previously led Full Harvest Technologies, a business-to-business platform for buying and selling produce.
Why We Picked It: On FarmTogether, you can invest in farmland through several different channels: crowdfunding, a 1031 exchange, sole ownership, Bespoke investments or the Sustainable Farmland Fund. FarmTogether is committed to sustainable farming and had its entire portfolio certified through the Leading Harvest Farmland Management Standard in 2021.
3. Best for Non-Accredited Investors: Steward
Dan Miller, whose family has farmed the eastern shore of Maryland since the 1880s, founded Steward Technologies, based in Beaverton, Oregon. The company combines Miller’s love of agriculture with his background in technology, real estate and finance.
Why We Picked It: Steward provides loans to regenerative agriculture businesses, such as farms, ranches, fisheries and food producers. Regenerative agriculture aims to restore soil and improve water to help reverse climate change, reduce pollution and make communities more drought- and flood-resistant. The platform allows you to participate in loans from agriculture businesses in exchange for a reasonable return.
4. Best for Range of Agriculture Investments: Harvest Returns
Chris Rawley, a retired naval officer who recognized the critical role agriculture plays in communities while deployed, founded Harvest Returns in 2016. The company is based in Fort Worth, Texas.
Why We Picked It: Harvest Returns bills itself as a one-stop platform to connect farmers and investors, providing capital for agricultural projects and allowing accredited investors to diversify their portfolios. The platform allows you to stake equity in vineyards, participate in high-yield debt for farms and invest in agriculture-technology companies, regenerative livestock and other agribusinesses.
5. Best for Investing in International Farmland: Farmfolio
Dax Cooke, an Alabama native, founded Farmfolio in 2015. He grew interested in domestic and international markets while working on Citigroup’s Capital Markets team in London. The company began in Panama but relocated to its current headquarters in Medellin, Colombia, in 2016.
Why We Picked It: On a mission to make farm ownership easy for everyone, Farmfolio allows investors to buy fractionalized lots of farms or whole farms in Colombia. The company uses a tenants-in-common structure to mark ownership of lots within larger farms, and it sells large tracts for investors who want to own an entire farm.
Investors can sell or transfer their lots anytime for a 3% real estate commission. The program is integrated and hands-free, meaning the company manages the farms, markets its products and sells the produce on your behalf. You can benefit from appreciation and cash flow.
Other Ways to Invest in Farmland
If crowdfunding a farm isn’t for you, consider one of several other ways to invest in farmland.
Agriculture Stocks
Some farms that produce food or livestock are publicly traded. Many companies that support farms with equipment, seeds and fertilizers or process and distribute crops are also publicly traded. You can invest based on the commodities, crops or livestock they produce.
Farmland REITs
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) – which own, operate or finance income-generating real estate – must pay out 90% of their profits. In the U.S., you can buy the shares of two farmland REITs on public exchanges: Farmland Partners and Gladstone Land.
Farmland Partners is concentrated in the Midwest, where corn, soybeans and wheat are the primary crops. It also has holdings in California and the Southeast. Gladstone Land holds farms in California and other coastal states and produces tree nuts, wine grapes, fruits and vegetables.
Agriculture ETFs and Mutual Funds
Agricultural exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and mutual funds prevent you from picking your farming stocks. These funds invest in a group of farming stocks, commodities or agriculture-related businesses, which can expose you to the farming industry and diversify your investment portfolio.
What Is a Farmland Investing Platform?
A farmland investing platform is an online marketplace that allows investors to pool their money to invest in a fraction of a farm or a whole farm by purchasing shares in a farm or a fund holding several farms. You benefit by not having to try to make an entire farm investment, which typically requires more capital than many individual investors have.
Typically, the platform manages the farmland for you. The platform can handle leasing the property to farmers and distributing returns to you. Most platforms require you to be an accredited investor, which means you must have a net worth of at least $1 million or an annual income of $200,000.
Consider Crowdfunding Through Farmland Investing Platforms
Farmland has helped families build wealth for generations. Farmland investing platforms have lowered the barrier for investors like you to begin investing in farmland. Consider whether investing in farmland fits your financial goals.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you invest in farmland?
You can invest directly in farmland, which can require a lot of capital and farming knowledge. However, you can also invest in farmland without seeing a farm in person through crowdfunding platforms, agriculture stocks, farmland mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), commodities, farmland real estate investment trusts (REITs) and farm debt.
Is there an ETF that invests in farmland?
No exchange-traded funds (ETFs) invest solely in farmland. However, several ETFs include the stock of farmland companies alongside other agriculture-related businesses, such as chemicals, fertilizers and farm machinery.
What is the average return on a farmland investment?
The average annual return on farmland investment has been 10.7% since 1991. Farmland returns include income and appreciation, and total farmland returns have been positive each year since 1990.