Question on leasing/renting farmland

Fundsurfer

New Member
Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum, I run a funding company in Bristol called Fundsurfer. We have a number of clients who are looking to grow hemp in the south west UK and are looking for farmland to lease, I'm totally new to this space and I wanted to ask if anyone can help me to understand what the process is and the availability of farmland to lease?

I've been looking online but it appears most 100+ acre farms are only available for sale, not to lease, I am looking into tenant farming currently but thought I'd put this to the forum and see if there is any advice you can give us? We can purchase the farms however looking to lease in first few years maybe sensible with an option to buy.

We have £100m+ available to invest into Hemp farming in the UK and I want to make sure we are doing things correctly and working with the farming community as a partner, involved from the beginning as we start to deploy capital into hemp.

We have Irish farmers offering to farm hemp for us, however being based in Bristol I wanted to see what is possible closer to home.

Thanks everyone, I'm hoping to make some new friends in the farming community to see how we can help supercharge the hemp industry in the UK as a financier and investor.

Oliver Mochizuki
Fundsurfer CEO & co-founder.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Goweresque

Member
Location
North Wilts
Seriously? You're fronting for £100m+ of investment funds and you're asking basic questions about renting farmland in the UK on a public forum? I hope your investors know what they're getting into :rolleyes:.

If you're for real, go and speak to some of the rural land agents in your area, they should be able to point you in the direction of people looking to lease land out. Apart from the big national chains like Savills and Strutt Parker, there are more regional agents like Greenslade Taylor Hunt in the West Country, and even smaller local firms. If you're going to rent land from landowners you're going to need to prove your bona fides to a land agent before landowners will give you the time of day.

Incidentally growing hemp in the UK has been attempted by quite a few UK farmers over the last few decades and their experience has not been that positive. There's little market for the product for starters, but more importantly the UK climate is not conducive to growing it, or rather it grows very well, but getting it harvested in good condition is a very hit and miss process, due to the nature of the weather in the average UK autumn. Its all very well having acres of the stuff growing like billy-o if you can't ever get it baled and into a shed to sell. A crop is only worth any money when its harvested, not left rotting in a field.
 

Fundsurfer

New Member
haha it is pretty nuts at the moment CBD/Medical/Hemp investment interest has gone skyhigh, now Canada and next California legalise cannabis. We work with different investor groups and they are all piling in, but it's a new opportunity for us and them, for sure, especially in terms of helping clients to secure UK farmland!! Our focus previously has been on tech, real estate, media & entertainment and crypto so this is all new to us.

Good advice in terms of connecting with land agents, we were looking to go direct to farmers so we will start there.

Thanks!

Oliver
 

Breckland Boy

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Breckland
Growing hemp requires home office approval as its a narcotic.
You really need a market before you can tempt farmers to risk growing it.
Only when the reward out weighs the risk will you find growers.
In my experience it's a risky crop.Dead loss one year good the next.
 

Highland Mule

Member
Livestock Farmer
Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum, I run a funding company in Bristol called Fundsurfer. We have a number of clients who are looking to grow hemp in the south west UK and are looking for farmland to lease, I'm totally new to this space and I wanted to ask if anyone can help me to understand what the process is and the availability of farmland to lease?

I've been looking online but it appears most 100+ acre farms are only available for sale, not to lease, I am looking into tenant farming currently but thought I'd put this to the forum and see if there is any advice you can give us? We can purchase the farms however looking to lease in first few years maybe sensible with an option to buy.

We have £100m+ available to invest into Hemp farming in the UK and I want to make sure we are doing things correctly and working with the farming community as a partner, involved from the beginning as we start to deploy capital into hemp.

We have Irish farmers offering to farm hemp for us, however being based in Bristol I wanted to see what is possible closer to home.

Thanks everyone, I'm hoping to make some new friends in the farming community to see how we can help supercharge the hemp industry in the UK as a financier and investor.

Oliver Mochizuki
Fundsurfer CEO & co-founder.


Nope, I don't think you have got £100m+, unless the 'm' means something different from the norm.

https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/08318097/filing-history
 

Lincoln75

Member
haha it is pretty nuts at the moment CBD/Medical/Hemp investment interest has gone skyhigh, now Canada and next California legalise cannabis. We work with different investor groups and they are all piling in, but it's a new opportunity for us and them, for sure, especially in terms of helping clients to secure UK farmland!! Our focus previously has been on tech, real estate, media & entertainment and crypto so this is all new to us.

Good advice in terms of connecting with land agents, we were looking to go direct to farmers so we will start there.

Thanks!

Oliver
Dont you think it would be easier to pay farmers (up front of course) who own their own land to grow hemp for your investors ? they know the land better than any would be farmer who`s never farmed anything bigger than a window box?
 

Jerry

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Devon
Neighbour grew some this year, not that he knew he was until he pulled into the field with the combine and the driver pointed it out in the headland......police told he to cut it and carry on!
 

Fundsurfer

New Member
Why are you not registered with the Financial Conduct Authority if you are a Funding company with £100m+ of client assets ready to invest?
Nope, I don't think you have got £100m+, unless the 'm' means something different from the norm.

https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/08318097/filing-history

Think there is some confusion here (my fault I didn't word post well but can't seem to edit or delete it!?!)

Fundsurfer are brokers, not the final investors. We represent clients looking to raise funding (e.g Hemp farms) and investors looking for investment opportunities.

For some reason, I can't edit the post as should have made that a bit clearer obviously!

We are only here to connect with potential landowners, not trying to 'scam' anyone - not sure what that would even look like! Considering we are looking at this on behalf of investors interested in helping to boost industrial hemp growth in the UK.

Been a very long time since I've been called a bellend though so that's pretty funny :)

Kind regards,

Oliver

.
 

Lincoln75

Member
I`m not convinced by any of your tale , at best your are very naive to believe that someone with no knowledge of agriculture could go out and rent a farm and grow a dope based product , your BA in media studies is best used for its intended purpose.
 

Fundsurfer

New Member
I`m not convinced by any of your tale , at best your are very naive to believe that someone with no knowledge of agriculture could go out and rent a farm and grow a dope based product , your BA in media studies is best used for its intended purpose.

Obviously, I'm not going to be personally farming, our clients have hemp growing licenses and a lot of experience farming other crops, I came to this forum to learn more about the space and to help out by connecting with other UK farmers/landowners who may be interested in getting involved.

For example, there are a number of farmers in Cirencester, Gloucester etc who we are talking to about them farming hemp on their land, we want to help boost the industrial hemp growing in the UK, it's a very new space and we think it's exciting. There are a lot of amazing uses for hemp across a number of industries ;)
 

Lincoln75

Member
Why is it that only a hippy dreamers / dope heads want to get in to this kind of industry ? maybe they think its the route to getting cannabis legalised, funny how farmers with decades of experience in all areas of agriculture do not appear to be interested.
OP do you use cannabis ? have you approached RAU / Cirencester about this idea ?
 

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