Reassurances in the Bay of Plenty kiwifruit industry is attracting interest from farm investment company MyFarm, which claims to have clients keen to invest in the region's orchards.

Sales manager Grant Payton says their calculations demonstrate why kiwifruit orchards are more profitable than traditional land uses such as dairy and sheep and beef farms.

MyFarm sales manager Grant Payton says the company has investors keen to buy into Bay of Plenty kiwifruit orchards. Photo: Supplied.

'In response to the demand for kiwifruit orchard investments, MyFarm is now seeking an orchard, shares in orchards and/or an orchard equity partner in the Bay of Plenty region,” confirms Grant.

'Investors like to see cash returns out of a business and they like to know their investment is secure. We look to do our best to manage risk and we have a lot of confidence in Zespri's single desk model.

'There's no doubt New Zealand's kiwifruit industry has been the quiet performer of the past two-to-three years. Much of that is due to Zespri's global marketing power, and the industry's significant investment in and control of kiwifruit varieties.”

He does, however, admit it is difficult for investors to access returns without purchasing an entire orchard.

The industry was not an attractive investment option a few years ago after the discovery of the vine disease Psa, but Grant says its remarkable recovery, including increased yields of green and gold fruit, now make it a desirable industry for investors.

MyFarm has already syndicated a large scale, $5 million kiwifruit orchard at Karaka in the Franklin District and is keen to invest in the Bay.

'We are looking for a quality orchard and will look at all options,” he says. 'It does not necessarily have to be a large orchard.”

The company could be interested in buying part of an orchard, freeing up capital for an owner who could retain an interest in the operation.

Investors in MyFarm are primarily New Zealanders, with a government-imposed cap of 24.9 per cent foreign ownership in place.

'Most of our investors are those who have some background in farming or orcharding. We do have one investor from Switzerland and one from Italy keen to be involved in a kiwifruit orchard.”

At a $50,000 minimum investment, Grant says the entry level is relatively low given that most of MyFarm's investments start at $250,000.

The company is actively seeking more investors, but once it secures an orchard, that investment option will close within two weeks.

Karaka Orchards Limited Partnership will own a 24.6 canopy hectare green kiwifruit orchard managed by Punchbowl Packco – one of the largest vertically integrated orchard, management, pack house and cool store operations in the Auckland region.

Their parent company, Punchbowl Investments, has also invested in Karaka Orchards.

Punchbowl Packco has been growing kiwifruit in the Franklin district since the early 1980s, and currently owns or leases 17 orchards in the Auckland region.

It is majority-owned by the Craig family and directors include Comvita and Investment Partners Chairman Neil Craig.

A third of the individuals who have invested in Karaka Orchards had previously invested in dairy and/or sheep and beef farms managed by MyFarm.

MyFarm Limited has been managing New Zealand rural land investments since 1990. They currently have 43 dairy farms and eight sheep and beef farms under management across NZ, with assets valued at more than $550 million.