This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
AAM Investment Group is expanding its poultry portfolio with the purchase of a broiler chicken enterprise in south east Queensland, where it says it is planning more acquisitions.
Located near the Scenic Rim’s Rathdowney, Kirchberg Poultry Farm is AAM’s first poultry investment in the sunshine state. The asset will sit within the AAM Diversified Agriculture Fund (ADAF).
One of its key priorities will be to finalise the conversion of the farm from commercial production to a facility that accommodates free-ranging chickens.
AAM managing director, Garry Edwards, said the RSPCA-accredited property was a “strategic addition” to the company’s portfolio of almost $1 billion of assets under management.
“Our foundational philosophy is to invest in different geographic regions and across different commodity supply chains to maximise risk management of diversified income streams by achieving scale, operational efficiency and growing value.
“This acquisition complements the existing poultry pillar within ADAF and will be the first of what we hope to be a meaningful expansion into the poultry industry in Queensland.”
Australians consume more than 50 kilograms of chicken meat each year per person.
Kirchberg Farms has been family-owned since 1995.
“This farm is a standout asset in south east Queensland and testament to the Coaster-Garton family’s dedication to the industry and best practice poultry management,” Edwards said.
“Since 2018 we have made a number of operational and environmental improvements across our poultry assets, and we will take some of those lessons onboard to ensure that we are achieving sustainable and efficient operations for the best environmental outcomes.”
AAM will recruit two new staff members to fill the vacancies left by the previous owners, and will retain the expertise of the existing management and employees at the site.
AAM has been shopping around its mixed-farming aggregation Sunshine Farms in NSW’s Lachlan Valley, which could net more than $90 million on its own. Sunshine Farms spans 14,074 hectares of irrigated and dryland cropping and grazing land across five non-contiguous holdings. It includes 14,766 megalitres of water entitlements.
Institutional investors looking for agricultural real estate are again finding a competitive advantage against family enterprises, as the return of more “regular” market conditions fails to temper demand for top-tier assets, according to LAWD’s Danny Thomas.
