Farm Forward identify and fully manage the acquisition of dairy farms; along with offering a competitive management agreement for when the farm commences operation. Farm Forward is based in Southland. It is critical to have that direct link into Southland so these opportunities can be identified and realised. Farm Forward work closely with the key rural professionals in Southland to uncover opportunities.
Matt Harrington
One of the principals in Farm Forward, Matt Harrington, has vital experience in the facilitation of rural equity farming syndicates. Matt has facilitated seventeen farm investments in Canterbury and Southland to date. Around half of these were with Matt’s previous employer – “MyFarm” – a specialist rural investment company.
Matt is a born and bred Southlander and has a strong passion to deliver a sound farming investment for his clients. This is achieved through bringing like-minded investors together and achieving an enjoyable and profitable investment which focuses on delivering sound investment returns. Matt finished with MyFarm in September 2012 to focus full time in Farm Forward. One of the first projects Matt facilitated under Farm Forward was a syndication of a 496 hectare dairy farm in Central Southland. This involved raising $9,250,000 of shareholder equity and sourcing a high calibre equity manager as part of this equity to manage the property and deliver the key parameters set out in the information memorandum. This property will settle with the new ownership in June 2014 with the 2013/14 season being the first year of production.
Matt has also been in three dairy farm equity syndicates in his own right in farms in Canterbury. Matt also brings a fourteen year rural finance career to Farm Forward.
Acquisition
Farm Forward’s role is to identify properties that meet investor criteria, largely around future production growth, future saleability, fair market value, and ability to deliver long term shareholder returns:
- Identify suitable investment opportunities.
- Conditional sale and purchase agreement
- Prepare information memorandum
- Once the overall equity target figure is established, Farm Forward will identifylike-minded investors to pool financial resource together to achieve this equity target figure.
- Due Diligence Report
- Source suitable trading bank finance from either Rabobank, ASB, Westpac, ANZ, or BNZ.
- Gaining Overseas Investment Office (“OIO”) approval (where required)
- Approval from shareholders
- Board of directors and chairman appointed – normally all parties come from within the shareholders. However an independent party can often be appointed subject to any governance shortfalls in the board.
- Confirm sale and purchase agreement
- Settlement of property
Farm Forward works for the investor to achieve the objectives set out by the investor.
Ongoing Investment Management
- Once the property is settled, Farm Forward provide a role around ensuring all details of the information memorandum are met by offering a management agreement to represent the owners.
- This role includes working with the on-farm manager and providing all communication back to the shareholders including financial performance and full reporting.
- A key measure of reporting is the milk graph and actual trading results to budget. These reports are produced bi-monthly.
Governance and Management
- Governance and Management are two distinctive areas of any business.
- Each farming syndicate will have a board of directors and a chairman. An overseas shareholder can have a New Zealand based director represent their shareholding. The business plan which essentially is driven from the information memorandum will be regularly reviewed by the directors.
- Management’s role (the on farm manager) is to execute the key areas such as milk production, cost of milk production, health and safety, employment, and compliance monitoring (effluent).
- Farm Forward will assist in the “steering” of the farm syndicate as well.