64 Time April 25/May 2, 2022
2030
Flipping
the Farm
AN INVESTMENT FUND FINDS PROFIT
IN HELPING AMERICAN FARMERS
PLANT A GREENER CROP
BY MARIA GALLUCCI
The Dwelley family has farmeD The fielDs
of Brentwood, Calif., for a century, growing organic
sweet corn, cherry trees, and low, leafy green beans
some 50 miles east of San Francisco.
During every harvest, the Dwelleys deliver their
bounty to grocery stores and wholesale markets
throughout the western U.S. With rich soils fed by
the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers, and hot
days capped by cool, breezy nights, the region
is ideal for growing produce. In recent decades,
though, much of the neighboring farmland has dis-
appeared. Strip malls and suburban tract housing
have sprouted up as the Bay Area’s population ex-
plodes and more farmers leave the business behind.
For the Dwelleys, who lease most of their acreage
from other families, the pool of available farms in
Brentwood is drying up. So, since 2017, they’ve
started leasing land slightly farther afield, from a
different type of farm owner: a private investment
fund known as Farmland LP.
The fund’s managers acquire conventional farm-
land and convert it to organic operations; they
then lease land to farmers growing specialty crops
such as berries, vegetables, and wine grapes. Since
launching in 2009, Farmland LP has snapped up
5,800 acres across Northern California, including