The amount of Australian farm land owned by Chinese interests has surged tenfold in the past year, climbing above 14 million hectares or 2.5 per cent of all agricultural land.
TIAA Global Agriculture Properties has acquired 10 of the 17 properties making up the SAF portfolio totaling 16,000 hectares across New South Wales, and Victoria.
Hong Kong based investors who recently took a 51 percent stake in northern NSW export beef processor, Bindaree Beef have plans to further develop their Western Australian grazing property investments, purchased in April last year.
The purchase of more Australian farms, agribusinesses and food processing plants is high on the agenda of one of the world’s biggest investment managers, the Chicago-based Nuveen.
Australian beef processor Bindaree Beef announced it has sold a 51 percent controlling stake in the family-owned company to Hong Kong-Australian billionaire, Hui Wing Mau, and Beijing-based equity fund Archstone Investment for approximately $120 million.
Hassad Food – owned by Qatar's sovereign wealth fund the Qatar Investment Authority – is selling another major portion of its Australian farmland portfolio worth about $80 million.
The Beidahuang Group is rumoured to have leased out the majority of its 85,000 ha of WA farmland purchased or leased in a $200 million spending spree five years ago
Even before Lu Xianfeng completed the $280 million purchase of Australia's largest dairy farm in April 2016, the Chinese billionaire was looking to sell. In a messy proposal, Mr Lu planned to offload his holding in the historic VDL to a Chinese listed vehicle he controlled.
Agribusiness represents a substantial opportunity as well as a priority or even a problem for investors in Asia
Hassad Australia, a $469 million farming company and wholly owned subsidiary of Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund has sold the Clover Downs Station located in Queensland, Australia, to farmer Bill Zell for $27 million.
China has replaced the United States as the second-largest foreign owner of agricultural land in Australia. (The U.K. is No. 1.)
Industry Super Australia claims foreign investors are cherry-picking the best Australian farming investments.
