Author: Lacey Benz

Organic farmers to harvest record acres in 2019

Written by Lacey Benz on November 14, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

Organic agriculture is growing – in 2019, 8.3 million acres were planted and certified organic in the US. This equates to 18,155 organic farms and a 3% jump from 2018. Mercaris, a leading data provider for organic and non-gmo markets, recently released their Annual Acreage Report and Organic Farm Heat Map, which highlights density and distribution of US organic farm operations. Highlights of the report include: Organic grain farmers will harvest a record amount of acres in 2019, measuring...

Foundations Can Unlock a Food System to Feed the World

Written by Lacey Benz on November 14, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

Iroquois Valley was featured in the Swift Foundation‘s piece for Stanford Social Innovation Review’s Summer 2019 issue. Their article looks at a few organizations, including California FarmLink and RSF Social Finance, who are working to support regional food systems through finance. It also identifies a role for foundations to accelerate investment into food system transformation. Read the full article here.

If We Want to Change Our Food System, We Need to Change Our Finance System

Written by Lacey Benz on November 8, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

Heritage breed pigs at Yker Acres Farm in Carlton County, MN While organic farming is growing, only 1% of all U.S. farmland is farmed organically. We’re looking to change that by providing secure, long-term land access for regenerative farmers. Key quotes: Our investment theory is that land security enables land stewardship — we believe that farmers will thrive when they’re backed by long-term capital that shares risk. In our experience, there’s no shortage of farmers who...

Is Organic Farming Risky?

Written by Lacey Benz on October 25, 2019. Posted in What We're Reading.

The National Center for Appropriate Technology recently released a report evaluating risk in organic agriculture based on five years of research. “I’m able to report that we found no strong evidence that organic farms are any riskier than non-organic ones, and at least some evidence to the contrary”, says Jeff Schahczenski, an Agriculture and Natural Resource Economist who helped author the report. Our own farmer partner, Doug Crabtree, who operates Vilicus Farms with...

A Best for the World Company

Written by Lacey Benz on September 4, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT, PBC is recognized as a “Best For The World” B Corp for customers, governance and overall. Iroquois Valley, a Certified B Corporation, has been named a Best For The World honoree in recognition of their significant positive impact in their innovative governance structures, supportive customer service, and across all categories. Ranking in the top 10% of all B Corps for their overall impact, Iroquois Valley earned this honor because of their overall mission,...

Purpose-driven business

Written by Lacey Benz on August 28, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

As a B Corp and Public Benefit Corporation, Iroquois Valley has long been committed to creating positive triple bottom line impacts. We’re grateful to be part of a community that recognizes business should consider all stakeholders, including people and planet. We’re glad to see that these ideas have gone mainstream with the Business Rountable’s recent announcement about the role of business in creating value for all stakeholders. The founders of the B Corp movement weighed...

Soil Wealth

Written by Lacey Benz on August 8, 2019. Posted in What We're Reading.

Croatan Institute recently released Soil Wealth, a comprehensive look at investing in regenerative agriculture across the US. Their term, soil wealth, relates to “the constellation of benefits associated with building both soil health and community wealth through regenerative agriculture.” The report offers an in-depth study of what’s already happening in this space alongside recommendations for capacity-building and growing the movement. We’re highlighted...

Press Release: Iroquois Valley’s Direct Public Offering

Written by Lacey Benz on July 25, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

Retail investors can now directly invest in organic farmland through Iroquois Valley’s Direct Public Offering (DPO). The DPO provides a long-term investment opportunity targeting market rate returns for the asset class while supporting healthy food production, environmental stewardship, and prosperity for independent farmers and their communities. “We want to mobilize the public to invest directly in small farmers and participate in building a healthier agricultural system,” says CEO...

Aeris Impact Management Assessment

Written by Lacey Benz on July 1, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

We recently became one of the first companies to undergo an Impact Management Assessment by Aeris. This assessment evaluates a fund’s impact management capacity by focusing on impact management systems and processes as the strongest indicator of the fund’s ability to make investments in alignment with its stated impact thesis and to achieve its impact goals. Aeris’ methodology has been established and refined through performing impact management and financial analyses and ratings of CDFIs...

‘A major punch in the gut’: Midwest rains projected to create near-record dead zone in Gulf

Written by Lacey Benz on June 20, 2019. Posted in What We're Reading.

It’s been a slow spring in the Midwest, marked by historically wet conditions that have caused floods and delayed planting throughout the region. These effects are being felt throughout the region and beyond: flooding in the Midwest is accelerating the flow of water from the Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico. The Washington Post recently reported on the connection between Midwestern agriculture and ocean health – and it’s not pretty. It’s critical that the farms in the Mississippi...