AgIS Capital
AgIS Capital is an employee-owned agricultural investment management firm that provides institutional investors with private-equity-style access to U.S. permanent crop farmland, including almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, walnuts, and apples, via direct ownership, debt, equity, and joint venture structures.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersBoston, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What AgIS Capital does
AgIS Capital is a privately held, employee-owned agricultural investment management firm founded in 2013 by Jeffrey Conrad, Kenneth Warlick, and Carolyn Bailey, all former Hancock Agricultural Investment Group executives. The firm provides institutional investors with access to farmland assets concentrated in the permanent crop sector — almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, walnuts, apples, cherries, pears, and olives — using a "private equity-like" approach that combines fee simple acquisitions, debt, equity, and joint venture structures, including co-investments in upstream commodity processing assets.
The firm's core operations span direct farmland asset management (overseen by AgIS Property Management under Carl Evers III, AFM) and a research-led client engagement model. AgIS produces a suite of proprietary publications — the annual State of the Market report, the quarterly State of the Harvest, and the quarterly State of Returns — authored by VP of Acquisitions Cody P. Dahl, Ph.D., and has joined the NCREIF Permanent Cropland Index. It maintains Leading Harvest Sustainable Farmland Management Standard certification, renewed in 2024 with annual surveillance audits.
Commercially, AgIS serves sophisticated institutional investors — pension funds, state school lands, and similar entities — through direct, relationship-based distribution led by VP of Business Development Stephen Kenney. The firm operates from a Clearwater, Florida headquarters and offices in Boston, Des Moines, Turlock, Richland, Charlotte, and Tampa, with operations concentrated in California's Central Valley and Washington State's Pacific Northwest. Revenue is generated through investment management fees and private equity/debt returns on commodity processing investments; specific fee structures and AUM are not publicly disclosed.
AgIS Capital firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- AgIS Capital
- Legal name
- AgIS Capital Inc.
- Website
- https://agiscapital.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- AgIS Capital is an employee-owned agricultural investment management firm that provides institutional investors with private-equity-style access to U.S. permanent crop farmland, including almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, walnuts, and apples, via direct ownership, debt, equity, and joint venture structures.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
AgIS Capital industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Agricultural Investment Management
- NAICS
- Crop Production (111)
- SIC
- Investors, Nec (6799)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Natural Resources — Farmland & Agriculture (FSAAAKAI)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Natural Resources Funds (Timberland, Farmland, Minerals) (FSANAEAK)
Keywords
Where AgIS Capital is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Boston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices7 records
Markets served
AgIS Capital business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Investment Management Fees: AgIS Capital generates revenue through investment management fees charged to institutional investors for managing their farmland assets. The firm utilizes co-investment structures to align interests with clients.
- Private Equity and Debt Investment Returns: The firm makes private equity and debt investments in associated commodity processing assets further up the agricultural value chain, generating returns on these investments.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
AgIS Capital product offering
Product offeringCore offering
AgIS Capital is a private, employee-owned investment manager that sources, underwrites, and manages institutional farmland portfolios concentrated in water-rich U.S. permanent crop assets (almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, walnuts, apples, cherries, pears, olives). The firm deploys capital through fee simple, debt, equity, and joint venture structures and supplements investment management with private equity and debt investments in associated commodity processing assets.
Product overview
AgIS Capital is an agricultural investment management firm offering institutional investors a disciplined, private equity-like approach to investing in farmland assets. The core offering consists of agricultural investment management services focused on the permanent crop sector, supported by a suite of proprietary research publications including the State of the Market Report (annual), State of the Harvest Report (quarterly), and State of Returns (quarterly) analyses. The firm manages permanent crop assets across almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, walnuts, apples, cherries, pears, and olives, utilizing creative fee simple, debt, equity and joint venture structures. The Perspectives from the Field series provides ongoing insights from the investment team on market trends and sustainability practices.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Agricultural Investment Management Services Discretionary and co-investment management of institutional farmland portfolios concentrated in water-rich U.S. permanent crop assets, serving pension funds, state school lands, and other sophisticated investors with fee simple, debt, equity, and joint venture deal structures.
- Permanent Crop Asset Management Direct operational oversight and management of permanent crop ranches producing almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, walnuts, apples, cherries, pears, and olives across California, Washington, and other U.S. regions, conducted through AgIS Property Management under Leading Harvest sustainability certification.
- State of the Market Report Annual report providing institutional investors with an overview of trends and forces influencing U.S. farmland returns, examination of the NCREIF Farmland Index, and analysis of permanent crop performance across various timeframes.
- State of the Harvest Report Quarterly report providing an overview of selected commodity markets, with each issue examining factors impacting the performance of specific permanent cropland assets and discussing near- and long-term outlooks.
- State of Returns Quarterly analysis providing a summary of NCREIF Farmland Index results, including annual returns for the Total Farmland, Annual Cropland, and Permanent Cropland Indices.
Quantifiable outcome
- NCREIF Permanent Cropland Index total return of -10.2% in 2024 (lowest since inception), demonstrating market leadership despite challenging conditions
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use AgIS Capital
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
AgIS Capital technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AgIS Capital partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Napa CountyminorAgIS Capital partnered with Napa County and UC Davis on a project to monitor the American Kestrel on one of their permanent crop assets. This biodiversity monitoring initiative demonstrates the firm's commitment to sustainable farming practices and environmental stewardship.
- University of California, Davis (UC Davis)minorPartnered with UC Davis and Napa County on American Kestrel monitoring project on AgIS Capital permanent crop assets. Collaboration with academic institution for biodiversity research.
- American Farmland OwnerminorCody P. Dahl, Ph.D. appeared on the 'Where Landowners Get Their News' podcast hosted by Emmy award-winning journalist Dave Price, discussing farmland returns, trade wars, and agricultural investment trends.
- Tehama County Resource Conservation District (RCD)minorRCD provided assistance in conducting distribution uniformity tests on California permanent crop irrigation systems. RCDs can often fund these tests, providing cost savings for farmers.
- East Stanislaus Resource Conservation District (RCD)minorRCD provided assistance in conducting distribution uniformity tests on California permanent crop irrigation systems. Partnership supports water and energy optimization efforts.
- Leading HarvestcoreLeading Harvest is an organization that helps AgIS Capital contribute to advancing sustainable agriculture and provides public assurance of sustainable farming systems through third-party independent audit reports. Certification achieved every three years with annual surveillance audits.
- Almond Board of CaliforniaminorCarl Evers and Farm Manager Jeremy Olday appeared as guests on the Almond Board of California's Almond Journey Podcast, discussing whole orchard recycling, cover crops, and sustainable farming practices.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
AgIS Capital competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Hancock Agricultural Investment Group (Manulife): Manulife's agricultural investment arm and the firm AgIS's founders came from. Directly competes for institutional farmland allocations in the U.S. and is one of the largest managers of permanent and annual cropland in the country — the most direct comparator.
- Westchester Group Investment Advisers (Nuveen/TIAA): One of the largest U.S. farmland investment managers, now part of Nuveen (TIAA). Competes head-to-head with AgIS for institutional permanent crop mandates across the same tree-nut, fruit, and vineyard asset classes.
- Gladstone Land Corporation: Publicly-traded farmland REIT focused on permanent crops (berries, nuts, tree fruit, vineyards) — operates in the same California and Pacific Northwest geographies as AgIS, though it owns rather than manages for institutional clients.
- Farmland Partners Inc. Publicly-traded farmland REIT owning row crops and, increasingly, permanent crops across the U.S. Direct geographic and crop-class overlap with AgIS, with a comparable institutional client base at the corporate level.
- Bonnefield Financial: Canadian-based farmland investment manager serving institutional investors across North America. Closely comparable business model — pooled farmland funds with permanent and annual crop exposure — though focused more heavily on Canadian row crops.
- Peoples Company: U.S. farmland brokerage, management, and investment firm with institutional land management capabilities. Comparable in offering farmland asset management to institutional clients, though broader in scope including brokerage and appraisal.
- Agricultural Capital (AgCap): Specialized permanent crop investment manager focused on almonds, pistachios, walnuts, and citrus in California — virtually identical target asset class and institutional LP base as AgIS Capital.
Emerging players
- Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT: Public, mission-driven farmland REIT focused on organic and regenerative farmland. Smaller and more niche than AgIS, but operates in adjacent geographies and competes for mission-aligned institutional and family-office capital.
Broad incumbents
- Brookfield Agricultural Group: Brookfield's global farmland platform — one of the largest alternative asset managers' agricultural divisions. Competes with AgIS for institutional permanent crop allocations but at vastly greater scale and with a permanent crop, annual crop, and timberland mix.
- Macquarie Asset Management (Macquarie Agriculture): Global asset manager with significant agricultural row crop and permanent crop exposure via its Paragon and Crop Management Australia platforms. A scaled incumbent competitor for global institutional capital with permanent crop mandates.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
AgIS Capital social profiles
Digital presenceAgIS Capital compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
AgIS Capital financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
AgIS Capital leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
AgIS Capital funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
AgIS Capital M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about AgIS Capital
What does AgIS Capital do?
AgIS Capital is a private, employee-owned investment manager that sources, underwrites, and manages institutional farmland portfolios concentrated in water-rich U.S. permanent crop assets (almonds, pistachios, wine grapes, walnuts, apples, cherries, pears, olives). The firm deploys capital through fee simple, debt, equity, and joint venture structures and supplements investment management with private equity and debt investments in associated commodity processing assets.
Is AgIS Capital a public or private company?
AgIS Capital is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was AgIS Capital founded?
AgIS Capital was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is AgIS Capital based?
AgIS Capital is headquartered in Boston, United States, in the North America region.
How does AgIS Capital make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Investment Management Fees are the primary driver. The others are private Equity and Debt Investment Returns.
Who are AgIS Capital's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Hancock Agricultural Investment Group (Manulife), Westchester Group Investment Advisers (Nuveen/TIAA), Gladstone Land Corporation, Farmland Partners Inc., Bonnefield Financial, Peoples Company and Agricultural Capital (AgCap). Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Brookfield Agricultural Group and Macquarie Asset Management (Macquarie Agriculture).
Does AgIS Capital have an API?
No public API is recorded for AgIS Capital.
What industry is AgIS Capital in?
AgIS Capital's product category is Agricultural Investment Management. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAAAKAI, Natural Resources — Farmland & Agriculture, with a secondary code of FSANAEAK, Natural Resources Funds (Timberland, Farmland, Minerals). Its NAICS code is 111 and its SIC code is 6799.