Australia

The Chinese exodus from the east coast beef, lamb and cropping sectors is gathering pace, with recent divestments by Rifa Salutary and Union Agriculture surpassing $50 million.

The acquisition of the Turnbull properties takes spending by TIAA's Nuveen subsidiary on Australia's northern NSW cropping country to almost $50 million in the last 12 months.

Consistent interest from Saudi Arabia in direct investment in foreign agriculture, such as SALIC's recent purchase of 200,000 ha in Western Australia, will continue.

Cross Pacific Investments, which is backed by the Buratovich family of Argentina, has now spent more than $43 million on top end Australian land in the last few months, totalling just over 540,000 hectares.

With very low interest rates having taken root across asset classes and investors abiding in their hunt for higher yields, the world’s largest manager of global farmland, Nuveen, says the season may be ripe for a strategic allocation to the $2.3 trillion market for U.S. farm real estate.

A mansion in Melbourne's east, newly constructed units and more than 3,000 acres of Tasmanian farmland are among $17.3 million in property seized by authorities as part of an investigation into alleged money laundering by Chinese nationals.

One of Quebec’s largest private investors thinks he has found the perfect investment vehicles to make up for sagging bond returns: milk, almonds and maple syrup.

Belgian sugar producer Finasucre has agreed to acquire the Winfield Road aggregation – the largest Macadamia portfolio in Australia – from Hancock Agricultural Investment Group for a record-breaking $59.2 million.

Terra Firma, founded by British multi-millionaire Guy Hands, has owned CPC since 2009 when it paid James Packer and partners about $425m for what was then a 5.6m hectare estate.

Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board has made another move to deepen its presence in Australian agriculture, taking full ownership of the largest irrigated farmer in Australia.

Canadian fund manager PSP Investments, a public service pension fund, has put in an offer for Australia's Webster farms, including their water entitlements, that values the diversified agribusiness at $854 million

The Vermont Pension Investment Committee has invested $100 million in the Nuveen Global Farmland Fund, which aims to make farmland acquisitions averaging $20m across the US, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Poland, Romania and Chile.