Rural Funds Group

What Rural Funds Group does

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF) is an Australian agricultural real estate investment trust that owns and leases a $2.1 billion portfolio of 61 properties across five Australian states (NSW, QLD, SA, WA, VIC), spanning five core sectors: almonds, cattle, vineyards, cropping and macadamias. The group operates under a stapled-security structure (Rural Funds Trust and RF Active) and is externally managed by Rural Funds Management (RFM), which has run the vehicle since 1997 and employs 258 staff including specialist fund managers, agronomists and horticulturists. Its technology platform layers precision-farming tools onto the physical assets — telemetry-enabled irrigation pumping, AI-vision autonomous tractors deployed on macadamia orchards, and a Permanent Sample Plot network instrumented with sap flow sensors — with cultivar R&D conducted in conjunction with the University of Queensland.

The business model is a sale-and-leaseback / develop-and-lease model: RFF acquires or develops agricultural land and water entitlements, then leases the improved assets to institutional tenant operators under long-dated triple-net leases (13.2-year weighted average lease expiry). Lessees include JBS Australia, Australian Agricultural Company, Treasury Wine Estates, Select Harvests and Olam Orchards Australia, with additional JV lessees in cattle and cotton. Revenue is therefore largely contractual rent, supplemented by water and carbon-related income streams (Kaiuroo soil carbon, Oakland Park HIR), and is distributed quarterly to unitholders, with FY26 forecast distributions of 11.73 cents per unit.

Operationally, the group is mid-cycle in a deleveraging program: gearing stood at 39.1% against a 30–35% target as at 31 December 2025, the Distribution Reinvestment Plan was suspended in December 2024, and a $260 million asset sales plan has been launched over a 12-month horizon. A March 2026 unitholder vote is scheduled to increase the J&F Guarantee supporting the JBS Australia cattle financing facility, while a 50% interest in Baamba Plains and Mayneland was sold into a joint venture with Traditional Owners in 2025, illustrating the use of partial monetization and partnerships as both financial and ESG tools.

Name

Rural Funds Group

Legal name

Rural Funds Management Limited

Website

https://ruralfunds.com.au

Company type

Public

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF) is an Australian agricultural REIT that owns and leases 61 properties across five sectors — almonds, cattle, vineyards, cropping and macadamias — to institutional operators such as JBS, AAC, Treasury Wine Estates, Select Harvests and Olam, distributing income quarterly to unitholders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural REIT

NAICS

Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)

SIC

Real Estate Investment Trusts (6798)

akta.pro primary industry

Natural Resources Funds (Timberland, Farmland, Minerals) (FSANAEAK)

Keywords

• Agricultural REIT
• Farmland investment
• Rural property leasing
• Agricultural asset management
• Real estate trust

Headquarters

HQ city

Canberra

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Rental Income from Agricultural Properties: RFF generates income by developing and leasing Australian agricultural assets to tenant operators. Properties are leased under long-term agreements with rent linked to capital expenditure. Portfolio includes almonds, cattle, vineyards, cropping, and macadamia properties across Australia.
2. Quarterly Distributions to Unitholders: RFF pays quarterly distributions to unitholders. FY26 forecast distributions are 11.73 cents per unit. The Distribution Reinvestment Plan (DRP) was suspended in December 2024.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Rural Funds Group is an ASX-listed agricultural real estate investment trust that owns a diversified portfolio of Australian agricultural assets — including almond orchards, cattle stations, vineyards, cropping land, and macadamia farms — and earns income primarily by leasing these assets and associated infrastructure to established agricultural operators under long-term lease arrangements. The stapled security pays quarterly distributions to unitholders derived from contracted lease income and capital growth in rural land and water assets.

Product overview

Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF) is a single, unified agricultural REIT product structured as a stapled security comprising Rural Funds Trust and RF Active. The fund operates as a direct property ownership and development vehicle, holding 61 properties across five Australian states spanning the almonds, cattle, cropping, macadamias, and vineyards sectors. RFM (Rural Funds Management) acts as the responsible entity and manager, deploying its 'Managing good assets with good people' philosophy to own, develop, and lease agricultural infrastructure to institutional-quality lessees. The product is distinct from the manager entity and is differentiated by its precision-based approach to asset management and sustainability initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rural Funds Group (ASX: RFF) stapled security An ASX-listed agricultural real estate investment trust that owns and leases a diversified portfolio of Australian agricultural assets, including almond orchards, cattle stations, vineyards, cropping land, and macadamia farms. It pays quarterly distributions to retail and institutional unitholders and is managed externally by Rural Funds Management.
• Agricultural property leasing Long-term leases of RFF-owned farmland, water entitlements, and associated infrastructure to established agricultural operators across multiple sectors, generating contracted rental income for the fund.

Quantifiable outcome

• Net property income up 7% to $49 million in H1 FY26
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Rohatyn Group (TRG)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2020Joint venture between TRG and a global institutional investor for macadamia orchard properties including Maryborough properties (x10), Rookwood Farms, Riverton, Nursery Farm, Cygnet, and Swan Ridge macadamia orchard properties. TRG JV also includes portion of cropping properties Baamba Plains, Mayneland, and Swan Ridge cropping.
• University of QueenslandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with University of Queensland to develop improved macadamia cultivars, contributing to varietal selection for higher-yielding orchards.
• Southern Cross UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Southern Cross University for long-term rate-response trial examining phosphorus interaction with other key nutrients for macadamia production. Includes systematic leaf and soil sampling to monitor nutrient dynamics.
• Clean Energy RegulatorminorOthersRegulatory body for carbon farming projects. RFM has applied for soil carbon project at Kaiuroo Aggregation and received conditional approval for Human-Induced Regeneration project at Oakland Park.
• Tagalaka Indigenous RangersminorOthersPartnership with local Tagalaka Indigenous rangers for carbon project mapping using LiDAR technology at Oakland Park for baseline stratification.
• WYLD ProjectsminorOthersCollaboration with WYLD Projects in FY25 to support habitat restoration efforts for the white-throated snapping turtle.
• University of SydneyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting University of Sydney as part of National Soil Carbon Innovation Challenge (NSCIC) to develop lower-cost technological solutions for measuring soil organic carbon.
• Western Local Land ServicesminorOthersPartnership with Western Local Land Services for Tocabil Sandhill Pine Woodlands Restoration project to regenerate endangered ecological community.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• GrainCorp: ASX-listed agribusiness with large-scale Australian grain handling and storage infrastructure. Comparable regional operator in Australian agriculture with adjacent farmland and water-asset exposure, though not a pure REIT.
• Elders Limited: ASX-listed Australian agribusiness providing rural inputs, agency services and livestock markets. Overlaps with RFF's tenant/customer base across broadacre cropping and cattle sectors in Australia.

Direct peers

• Farmland Partners Inc. US-listed farmland REIT owning farmland across the US, leasing to operators and farming in-house. Comparable to RFF in sale-and-leaseback strategy, diversified row-crop and permanent-crop portfolio, and REIT distribution model.
• Gladstone Land Corporation: US-listed farmland REIT that acquires and leases farmland to farm operators on long-term triple-net leases. Directly comparable to RFF in structure, lease-based income model and agricultural real estate focus.

Others

• Costa Group Holdings: ASX-listed major Australian horticultural producer with permanent-crop assets (citrus, berries, avocado, mushrooms). Comparable to RFF as a permanent-crop agriculture operator that may also be a tenant or competitor on similar Australian farmland.
• Australian Agricultural Company (AACo): ASX-listed largest integrated cattle producer in Australia and a current RFF tenant (Comanche, Rewan, Homehill). Comparable as a large-scale Australian cattle landowner/operator and counterparty to RFF's leases.
• Prime Super / Aware Super Agricultural Investments: Major Australian super funds that have built direct agricultural property portfolios (including farmland and water). Comparable institutional capital pool operating in the same Australian agricultural real estate investment space as RFF.

Broad incumbents

• TIAA / Nuveen (Global Agriculture & Timber): Operates one of the world's largest direct farmland investment programmes through Westchester. Comparable to RFF as institutional-scale agricultural real estate investor with long-term leased income mandates.
• Macquarie Asset Management — Real Assets Agriculture: Macquarie's agricultural real assets platform invests in farmland and agribusiness globally. A broad incumbent operating in the same large-scale agricultural real estate investment space as RFF/RFM.
• Hancock Agricultural Investment Group: One of the largest institutional farmland managers globally, part of Manulife Investment Management, investing in farmland across the US, Australia and Canada. Directly comparable to RFM's large-scale, multi-region agricultural real estate mandate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC1Ltp7P2LIH7v-FvkHCe9JQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/people/Rural-Funds-Management/61558742295841
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rural-funds-management-limited

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments2 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rural Funds Group