Evergreen rates AAM agriculture fund

Evergreen Ratings has given the AAM Diversified Agriculture Fund (ADAF) a highly commended rating, citing its ability to provide wholesale investors access to agri-economy investment options that were previously hard to access.

The AAM Investment Group focusses on investment in Australia's agricultural industries. The ADAF is a closed-end fund that provides access to the primary production supply chains of cattle, sheep, cropping and sustainable softwood processing.

"Although there may be several wholesale funds that target the agricultural sector, few could claim to be diverse, either in also being the owner of the operating entity (rather than just a lessor/lessee arrangement), or across both sectors and geographies, as ADAF," Evergreen Ratings founder and chief executive officer, Angela Ashton, said.

Another point of difference for the fund, according to Ashton, is technology development and adoption. An example of this was the application of the partially SA Government-funded Tesla battery, which was matched to numerous solar panels on the roofs of chicken sheds. Reliance on the electricity grid and costs were reduced as a result.

AAM Investment Group managing director and founder, Garry Edwards, said the group's long-term objective is create an institutional-scale diversified agricultural portfolio across Australia.

"In an era defined by global food demand trends that are transforming society as we know it, contributing to a positive and sustainable agriculture future for Australia is an exciting place to be," he said.