SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: Centuria Capital Group (ASX: CNI) has secured a 20-hectare tomato glasshouse at 160 Elm St, Guyra NSW on behalf of its unlisted pure-play, Centuria Agriculture Fund (CAF) from a family-owned investment office.
The off-market acquisition increases the Group’s total agricultural assets under management (AUM) to $500million.
The transaction is CAF’s third off-market glasshouse acquisition taking the total size of its glasshouses under management to c.74-hectares under-glass, worth $323million with a WALE exceeding 18 years, cementing Centuria as Australia’s biggest large-scale glasshouse landlord.
Centuria Capital Group was launched at the commencement of FY23 as a new alternative fund vehicle for the group and its growth has been extremely rapid, proving popular with both Centuria’s retail and private bank investment clients.
The existing tenant, Tomato Exchange, has entered a new, extended lease on a 15-year, triple-net lease term with CPI linked annual rent reviews. In addition to the 20-hectare glasshouse, the asset includes a one-acre nursery, 65 megalitre dam, packing and distribution sheds and cool rooms.
Tomato Exchange produces 12,800 tonnes of tomatoes from the asset each year and is a wholly owned subsidiary of ASX-listed Costa Group, Australia’s largest grower, packer and marketer of vegetable and fresh fruit, which has longstanding relationships with Australian blue-chip fresh produce retailers including Coles, Woolworths, Aldi, Costco and Harris Farms.
Jason Huljich, Centuria Joint CEO, said “Centuria has expressed its intention to strategically grow its platform across alternative real estate sectors, including agriculture. We believe strong demand fundamentals will drive continued investor interest in agricultural real estate and Centuria will continue to seek high quality assets, leased to reputable operators with strong sustainability credentials in high revenue producing sectors such as protected cropping. We have developed a healthy acquisition pipeline of assets which suit the CAF investment profile and expect total agriculture AUM to exceed $600million during FY23 and continue to grow rapidly in FY24.”