Greener Pastures New Zealand Unveils Innovative Kiwifruit Fund Tied to Investor Visa Program

Photo: New Zealand

Greener Pastures New Zealand has unveiled a specialized kiwifruit investment fund designed to attract wealthy foreigners into the country’s vibrant horticultural scene, potentially accelerating their path to permanent residency. Launched last month, the Greener Pastures Kiwifruit Fund builds on the firm’s deep expertise in New Zealand’s agricultural markets. Investors are given the opportunity to establish roots in New Zealand while making a contribution to the local economy.

This innovative fund enables high-net-worth individuals and families seeking New Zealand permanent residency through the Active Investor Plus visa program, often referred to as the nation’s “Golden Visa,” to meet investment requirements by participating in the kiwifruit industry. And as demand for New Zealand’s Golden Visa grows, this strategy thrusts the kiwifruit sector into the spotlight as both a compelling asset class and an innovative pathway to potentially permanent residency.

Private equity firm Greener Pastures, a subsidiary of funds manager Origin Capital Partners, founded in 2020, specializes in the government and private-sector relationships while guiding investors through the Active Investor Plus (AIP) visa program based on their goals. This new investment vehicle marks its third kiwifruit-focused fund from the group, following two predecessor funds that collectively oversee more than NZ$225 million in assets, making them among the nation’s largest strategies in the sector.

At its core, the fund channels investments exclusively into New Zealand’s kiwifruit ecosystem, including a combination of kiwifruit orchards and equity shares in kiwifruit exporter and marketer Zespri. It will target established orchards as well as emerging greenfield sites from bare land, satisfying the visa program’s requirements for direct ownership of premium horticultural assets. New Zealand kiwifruit sector boasts a history of generating value, where returns on kiwifruit land have steadily surpassed those of other agri-businesses, according to the announcement, owing to strengths like optimal climate and counter-seasonal exports to the Western hemisphere, joining the ranks of primary markets like dairy, meat and forestry.

According to the New Zealand Herald, investors must commit a minimum of NZD 4.8 million (USD $2.9 million) to participate in the new fund, a threshold that reflects the eased regulatory requirements introduced earlier this year to “turbocharge economic growth,” per Immigration Minister Erica Stanford. Beyond the financials, applicants must be of good standard of health and character, with funds potentially fueling expansions in the sweeter SunGold variety, a yellow-hued kiwifruit in the Bay of Plenty region, the NZ Herald reports. The initiative has already secured nods from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise officials, signaling governmental backing for agri-business as an economic driver.

Green Pastures New Zealand Managing Director Dominic Jones stated, “We’re very proud to unveil the Greener Pastures Kiwifruit Fund. It gives our clients the ability to meet the investment requirements of the Active Investor Plus visa through investing in one of New Zealand’s most successful industries. This is a sector that has delivered enormous value to its stakeholders for many years, and it does so by providing a leading product to the world. Kiwifruit is an excellent health product for consumers, it is environmentally friendly, and investment in the sector is great for our country, New Zealand. The industry has been one of New Zealand’s success stories over a long period of time, and the outlook for this sector is exciting.”

Jones, whose multi-generational family ties trace back to the kiwifruit and dairy industries, reportedly emphasized the fund’s role in capitalizing on recent “enormous growth” in the sector. Currently, Greener Pastures and Origin Capital Partners manage roughly 150 canopy hectares of Bay of Plenty orchards on behalf of 250 New Zealand investors, a foundation that now extends to international newcomers eyeing a slice of the country’s pastoral paradise.

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