'Not just buying the Farm' - Prime Super's investment experience in Agriculture

Prime Super chief executive officer LACHLAN BAIRD writes in  SuperFunds magazine's May edition that although agriculture as an investment class has struggled to deliver what investors need, there are solutions that can help grow its appeal. Superannuation funds—in tandem with government—can be part of the solution. 

'Prime Super has provided super and retirement solutions to Australians for more than 20 years. From beginnings in rural Australia, the fund has expanded to represent a diverse range of workers across multiple industries. It has a long and strong relationship with all the state farming bodies as well as the national peak farming body, the National Farmers Federation, and the union that represents workers in this sector, The Australian Workers Union.

Prime Super has for many years invested directly into agriculture, and to be honest, the outcome has been less than satisfactory. There were many reasons for the poor investment outcome – partly it was the wrong investment and it was poorly managed, however, economic and climatic factors also played a significant part in the underperformance.'

Read more here  Not-just-buying-the-farm-Lachlan-Baird-ASFA-SuperFunds-magazine.pdf