It's possible for investors to avoid the stock market all together if they want to put their money in agriculture, said Stephen Johnston, a partner with Calgary-based Agcapita, which handles assets worth more than $100 million. Agcapita offers a farmland fund, which pools investor capital to buy farmland, mainly in Saskatchewan. The land is then rented back to farmers.
It's the only fund of its kind in Canada that is eligible for registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) or tax free savings accounts (TFSAs).
"When you own farmland, effectively what you're exposed to are agricultural commodity prices but without the volatility," said Johnston. "If you want exposure to the growth in the emerging world, buy farmland. You can invest in that growth story, but in a very safe part of the world and also in an asset class that's very low risk."
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