AcreTrader makes 16,000-acre deal, launches open-ended farmland fund

Fayetteville-based AcreTrader, a farmland investment platform of Proterra Investment Partners, recently completed the disposition of 57 farmland assets across 13 states, generating over $135 million in investor distributions. It also recently established a fund to expand access to investment-grade farmland as an asset class.

According to Goldman Sachs, a disposition is the process of removing an asset from a portfolio, whether through a sale, donation or exchange. The dispositions were funded on the AcreTrader platform between 2019 and 2024, according to a news release. The transaction includes about 16,000 acres of farmland, producing over 10 crops. All farmers with active leases will maintain control to ensure a smooth transition for area producers.

Since AcreTrader was founded in 2017, it has had 75 realizations, representing more than $189 million in total distributions. According to Goldman Sachs, a realization is the act of converting an asset’s value into cash or a taxable form by selling or transferring it.

According to a separate news release, AcreTrader has launched the Proterra AcreTrader Farmland Fund LP, an open-ended fund structured as a private, non-traded REIT. The fund allows for increased diversification due to farmland’s negative correlation to financial assets, a modified redemption structure, and a single K-1 for tax reporting. The fund focuses on investment-grade farmland in agricultural regions across the United States.

“This fund launch represents an exciting expansion of the AcreTrader platform following the integration of the AcreTrader team into the Proterra family,” said Rich Gammill, managing partner of Proterra. “The fund combines Proterra’s decades of institutional fund management experience with AcreTrader’s innovative sourcing and underwriting capabilities. AcreTrader has an established track record of sourcing, managing and exiting high-quality farmland for investors. We are excited to leverage our position as one of the largest global food and agriculture asset managers to offer AcreTrader’s expertise to a wider investor audience.”

Since its inception, AcreTrader has invested and managed more than $311 million in U.S. row crop farmland assets across 147 investments. AcreTrader has 12 full-time employees in Fayetteville.