--- title: "Farmland LP Review 2026: Fund I Preferred Offering, Returns and Risks" url: https://altstreet.investments/platforms/reviews/farmland-lp kind: platform-review updated: 2026-10-16 description: "Farmland LP review 2026: the Fund I Preferred Offering's stated 5% return, 2031 redemption and conversion feature, the concentration in two farms, the sponsor's record and what to ask before investing." publisher: AltStreet (https://altstreet.investments) license: Public factual pages may be read, quoted and cited with attribution and a link. Bulk redistribution is not permitted. --- # Farmland LP Review 2026: Fund I Preferred Offering, Returns and Risks Farmland LP is a Bay Area manager of private organic and regenerative farmland funds, and in 2026 it is marketing a 5% preferred offering in its oldest fund to accredited investors at $100,000. The offering is concentrated in two farms, and the public information is not enough to assess how the payments, the conversion and the redemption would be funded. AltStreet score: 33.9 (D+), scored October 16, 2026. Method: https://altstreet.investments/platforms | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Platform | Farmland LP | | What it is | Private farmland fund sponsor (Delaware limited partnerships and LLCs sold under Rule 506 to accredited investors) | | Asset class | U.S. farmland in Northern California, Oregon and Washington converted to organic, regenerative and permanent-crop use; this review's offering is a preferred interest in Fund I | | Website | farmlandlp.com | | Review first published | October 16, 2026 | | Last updated | October 16, 2026 | | AltStreet relationship | None: no affiliate, sponsorship or partnership | ## The short version A preferred investment concentrated in two farms, from a long-running organic farmland sponsor, whose public information is insufficient to assess payment coverage, conversion economics and redemption funding. - **5% stated** Preferred return: '5.0% simple annual, paid semi-annually (cash or PIK at investor election)' (deck); 'paid in cash every six months until conversion' (website). A stated preferred return, subject to the governing terms and the fund's ability to pay. $100,000 minimum, accredited investors only. Deck: 'Targeting $10M+ by December 31, 2026.' - **Dec 31, 2031** Redemption date in the deck's term table. The website says 'Hold period of 5-6 years,' which a fixed 2031 date produces for subscriptions in 2026. The deck also calls the offering 'A five-year convertible preferred interest' and gives a '6 Year term'; whether the term runs from subscription, closing or a fixed date needs confirming. - **120%** Conversion threshold: '120% of Dec 2025 NAV' (deck). The deck also says 'GP may convert to LP interests when NAV ≥ Conversion Threshold.' Fund I's NAV is not published, and the conversion ratio and treatment of accrued return are not public. - **$95.5M** 2025 appraisals of Fund I's two farms, against $32.6 million paid (deck): Burns Farm, 4,242 acres, bought December 2012 for $29.5 million, appraised at $87.2 million (about 91%); A2R, 692 acres, bought March 2012 for $3.1 million, appraised at $8.3 million. Fund I's debt is not public, so equity value cannot be derived from these figures. - **5.6% / 1.5x** Fund I's historical net post-tax IRR and multiple for the common equity since 2009, as of December 31, 2025 (deck), partly appraisal-based; calculation and dated cash flows not published. Separately, the deck's target for the preferred is 14% to 16% net IRR over six years, and the sponsor's advisor guide states 12% to 13% for Fund III over ten years. - **$24.3M** Fund I farm sales (deck): Fern Road ($0.7 million to $2.1 million), Wattenpaugh ($0.4 million to $1.0 million), Brentwood Creek ($10.6 million to $20.0 million) and Orland (bought in 2018 for $2.8 million, sold for $1.2 million, 0.4x); the deck puts the sold farms at 1.7x in total. - **$110.0M** Fund III (Vital Farmland III, LLC): $109,960,527 from 581 investors on its October 2025 Form D/A, sold through Alto Securities, LLC; marketed as a $250 million fund and, per the website, closed in March 2026. Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund invested in it in 2024. Data note: Sources: farmlandlp.com captured October 16, 2026; the sponsor's Fund I Convertible Preferred Interests deck; SEC EDGAR Form Ds of seven related entities. Fund I's financial statements, debt and fees are not public; appraisal and return figures are the sponsor's. ## Verdict Farmland LP is an established organic farmland sponsor with a working farm operation. The Fund I Preferred Offering offers a stated 5% and a 2031 redemption date on a fund concentrated in two farms, most of the value in Burns Farm. The fund became EBITDA positive in 2025 by the sponsor's account, and its blueberries are projected to raise cash generation by 2029; its debt, fees and cash position are not public, so payment coverage and redemption funding cannot be assessed from public sources, and the conversion feature cannot be valued without the conversion formula. An accredited investor interested in this sponsor's farms should evaluate the offering on the governing documents and audited statements, which this review does not use. **Best for** - Accredited investors who want exposure to organic and regenerative farmland and to this sponsor specifically - Investors who can hold to the marketed December 31, 2031 redemption date - Investors who will review the partnership agreement and audited statements before subscribing **Look elsewhere if** - You need assured income on a fixed schedule - You may need the money before 2031 - You want public, audited reporting - You need the target return to be likely rather than possible **Strengths** - Seventeen years of operation, three funds and about 19,000 acres; an organic blueberry operation the sponsor says grew 13.4% of California's organic blueberries - A preferred position with a stated return and a dated redemption, with the cash-or-PIK choice at the investor's election per the deck - A principal farm the sponsor describes as diversified across 12 crops and 7 tenants - Institutional investment in Fund III (Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund), a 2024 Agri Investor Farmland Fund Manager of the Year award, and no SEC, FINRA or state action or federal suit against the sponsor located in AltStreet's scan **Limitations** - Payment coverage and redemption funding cannot be assessed from public sources - Value concentrated in one farm, Burns, about 91% of appraisals - Conversion economics not determinable from the public terms - Reported fundraising totals not reconciled to the Form D notices AltStreet located ## What this means for your decision. | Topic | Finding | | --- | --- | | | Public information is not enough to assess how the 5% and the redemption would be paid | | | The offering is a portfolio concentrated in two farms | | | The conversion feature cannot be valued from the public terms | | | The fund's past record and the preferred's target measure different things | | | AltStreet did not locate Form D notices reconciling the sponsor's reported fundraising totals | Farmland LP has a real operating business: three funds, about 19,000 acres, an organic blueberry operation it says grew 13.4% of California's organic blueberries, institutional money in its third fund and a seventeen-year history. The Fund I Preferred Offering is a concentrated preferred investment, and the public information is insufficient to assess payment coverage, conversion economics and redemption funding. That is a limit of public disclosure, not a finding against the offering. It suits an accredited investor who wants this sponsor's farms, can hold to the marketed 2031 redemption date, and gets the governing terms and audited statements first. ## Who it fits | Investor | Fit | Why | | --- | --- | --- | | retail | poor-fit | | | accredited-income | neutral | | | impact-investors | neutral | | | institutional | neutral | | ## Questions **What is Farmland LP?** A Larkspur, California manager of private farmland funds, founded in 2009 by Craig Wichner, that converts conventional farmland to organic, regenerative and permanent-crop production in Northern California, Oregon and Washington. Its funds include Vital Farmland LP (Fund I) and Vital Farmland III, LLC (Fund III). **Is Farmland LP a good investment?** That cannot be judged from public information alone. The Fund I Preferred Offering offers a stated 5% return, a December 31, 2031 redemption date and a conversion option, on a fund concentrated in two farms. Its debt, fees, cash position and the conversion formula are in confidential offering documents, so payment coverage, conversion economics and redemption funding have to be assessed from those documents and the fund's audited statements. **Who can invest in Farmland LP, and what is the minimum?** Only accredited investors. The Fund I Preferred Offering's minimum is $100,000, per the sponsor's website. **How does the Fund I preferred offering work?** Per the sponsor's materials, the preferred carries a stated 5% simple return paid twice a year, in cash or additional interests at the investor's election, and a redemption date of December 31, 2031. Holders may convert into Fund I's regular partnership interests once the fund's value reaches 120% of its December 2025 NAV, and the general partner may also convert at that point. The conversion ratio and the treatment of accrued return are not public. **Is the 5% paid in cash?** The website says 'paid in cash every six months until conversion'; the deck says 'cash or PIK at investor election.' Confirm in the partnership agreement that investors retain an enforceable cash election and whether any provision permits the fund to defer payment. **What returns has Farmland LP produced?** The sponsor's deck reports a 5.6% net post-tax IRR and 1.5x multiple for Fund I's common equity since 2009, as of December 31, 2025, mostly from land appreciation and partly appraisal-based. That is a historical figure for a different instrument from the new preferred, whose deck target is 14% to 16% net IRR; the sponsor's stated target for Fund III is 12% to 13%. **When can I get my money back?** The deck sets a redemption date of December 31, 2031, which the website describes as a five-to-six-year hold. Whether the fund can pay at that date, what happens if it cannot, and whether the term runs from that fixed date or from subscription are set by terms not public. There is no public market for the interests. **Is Farmland LP regulated by the SEC?** Its offerings are exempt private placements under Rule 506; they are not registered or reviewed by the SEC. Fund I files no periodic reports, AltStreet found no adviser registration for the sponsor's entities, and it found no SEC, FINRA or state action against the sponsor as of October 16, 2026. **How does Farmland LP compare with Amber Farmland and AcreTrader?** Amber Farmland (formerly Iroquois Valley) is an organic farmland REIT with audited public reports, open to non-accredited investors at $10,000. AcreTrader sells single-farm LLCs to accredited investors and has a long published record of realized exits. Farmland LP sells private fund interests to accredited investors at $100,000 with no public financial reporting, and its value-add strategy concentrates each fund in a few large farms. ## Update history **October 16, 2026: Source description corrected** The review previously described its sources as public only. The sponsor's Fund I presentation is sponsor-provided and not publicly available, so the review now says it is built from public filings, company publications and a sponsor-provided presentation, cited by page. Confidential offering documents were not reviewed. No figures or score changed. ## Evidence appendix Platform website captured October 16, 2026. Four sources: (1) farmlandlp.com captured October 16, 2026 (124 pages); (2) the sponsor-provided 'Fund I Convertible Preferred Interests Overview' (undated, nine pages, received October 2026, not publicly available); (3) SEC EDGAR Form D filings of seven related entities and AltStreet's Form D ledger and related-persons data from the SEC's quarterly data sets; (4) a legal scan the same day (CourtListener, SEC IAPD, general searches). **Highlights** - Payout (deck p. 8): '5.0% simple annual, paid semi-annually (cash or PIK at investor election)'; (website): 'A preferred return paid in cash every six months until conversion.' - Term (deck p. 8): 'Redemption Date December 31, 2031 (with conversion)'; (deck p. 7): 'A five-year convertible preferred interest in Fund I' and '6 Year term with conversion option'; (website): 'Hold period of 5-6 years.' - Conversion (deck p. 8): 'Conversion Threshold 120% of Dec 2025 NAV'; 'GP may convert to LP interests when NAV ≥ Conversion Threshold.' - Cash profile (deck p. 3): 'EBITDA positive in 2025 and blueberry maturity by 2029 will boost cash flow, shifting returns from land appreciation to cash.' - Fund I capital (deck p. 3): 'Raised ~$35M in equity (2009-2014) and an additional $26M completed in 2022 for organic blueberry expansion'; 'Thirty-year fund (6-year lockup period) ends in 2039.' - Brentwood Creek: deck p. 4 sold-farms table 'Brentwood Creek incl. Adobe Addition, CA, 1,566, 3/1/2012, $10.6, $20.0, 1.9'; impact page 'Brentwood Creek California · almonds · 762 acres ... Baseline set in 2025.' - IAPD search 2026-10-16: no record for Vital Farmland, Farmland LP or their related entities. - Legal scan (2026-10-16): no SEC, FINRA, state action or federal suit naming the sponsor, its funds or Mr. Wichner located; Vital Farmland appears as a buyer in the Trinitas Chapter 11 (Bankr. N.D. Cal. 24-50211). **Primary source pages** - farmlandlp.com/invest/ ('The Fund I Preferred Offering' and the Burns Farm before-and-after table), /about/, /impact/, /2025/03/the-advisors-guide-to-farmland-investment/, 2024-11 Trinitas acquisition and Microsoft releases, 2025-03 Agri Investor award, 2025-09 Stemilt joint venture, /2013/02/four-years/ - Farmland LP, 'Fund I Convertible Preferred Interests Overview' (sponsor-provided presentation, undated, nine pages, not publicly available), pp. 2 to 8 - SEC EDGAR Form D: Vital Farmland LP 0001539587-12-000001 and -000002; Vital Farmland REIT, LLC 0001615624-14-000001, -14-000002, -25-000002; Vital Farmland III, LLC 0001992978-23-000001, -24-000001, -25-000002; Vital Farmland Operating III, LLC 0001992978-23-000002, 0001992976-24-000001; Vital Riverwood Farm, LLC 0001969142-23-000001; Vital Farmland Holdings, LLC 0001596874-14-000001, -16-000001, -16-000002; Vitality Farms, LLC (2014) - SEC, Filing a Form D notice (sec.gov): Form D required, generally within 15 days after the first sale - CourtListener: In re Trinitas Advantaged Agriculture Partners IV, LP, Bankr. N.D. Cal. 24-50211 (searched 2026-10-16) ## Related - Full review (HTML): https://altstreet.investments/platforms/reviews/farmland-lp - Every platform review: https://altstreet.investments/platforms/reviews - Methodology and scoring: https://altstreet.investments/platforms - Category hub: https://altstreet.investments/categories/fractional-real-assets/farmland-investing --- Source page: https://altstreet.investments/platforms/reviews/farmland-lp Machine index: https://altstreet.investments/llms.txt AltStreet reads what platforms, funds and issuers file with the SEC and what they tell investors, and publishes the difference. Figures are as filed or as captured on the date stated; nothing here is investment advice.