Deutsche Asset Management has launched a managed fund offering investment opportunities in global agribusiness, responding to what it perceives is a growing trend driven by population growth, rising income levels, a decline in agricultural land and global warming.
Managed by DWS, the global mutual fund arm of Deusche Bank’s asset management division, the DWS Global Equity Agribusiness Fund is thought to be a first in Australia, seeking investments in all parts of the food production-to-consumption value chain via stakes in listed companies worldwide.
The targeted companies are involved in various forms of agribusiness, including land and plantations, seeds and fertilisers, equipment manufacturing for planting and harvesting, crop protection, irrigation, aquaculture, bio-fuels, marketing and sales of agricultural products and climate services.
Deutsche investment specialist Bill Barbour said the attractiveness of the sector is a by-product of long-term fundamental changes impacting both developed and developing nations.
“There clearly are investment opportunities stemming from the business of feeding the world.
“Populations are swelling, driving fierce demand for food É The race is on not only to feed the world, but also to produce more quality food to meet the changing nutritional needs of this increasingly affluent population,” Barbour said.
He thinks increased global prosperity is impacting consumption patterns, with the growing middle classes of developing nations demanding more beef, pork and poultry, along with feed sources for livestock.
The DWS Global Equity Agribusiness Fund is the first in a series of DWS managed funds Deutsche plans to release in Australia. It has a minimum investment amount of $25,000.
