Category: News & Media

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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...

Restoring the Heartland

Written by Lacey Benz on April 15, 2019. Posted in News & Media.

Iroquois Valley was featured in the Spring 2019 issue of the Stanford Social Innovation Review – read the piece here. “Restoring the Heartland” looks broadly at trends in agriculture and positions our work providing secure land tenure to transitioning and organic farmers as part of a larger shift toward regenerative economic and agricultural systems. Key quote: “In our view, we are regenerating an asset we’re lending against,” says Miller. “Our investors understand that our...

Civil Eats: Can an Investment Firm Help Increase U.S. Organic Farmland?

Written by Lacey Benz on October 30, 2018. Posted in News & Media.

Iroquois Valley was featured in a Civil Eats article, “Can an Investment Firm Help Increase U.S. Organic Farmland?” for our work to help scale organic agriculture in America. The article features interviews with farmers we work with at Vilicus Farm, Creambrook Farm, and Richview Farms. Some key takeaways from the article: Demand for organic products is increasing in the US, but organic acreage has not increased at the same rate. Iroquois Valley is changing that by financing...