Sumac Creek Farm
Kankakee County, Illinois
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Last November on a cold winter day in Peotone, Illinois, Rachael Jones and her family attended an open house at our Rock Creek Farm. At the event, Iroquois Valley gave visitors a tour and presented its agroforestry-oriented vision for the farm while serving food from two of our regenerative dairy clients: Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery in Champaign, IL and Rocky Road Dairy in Mulberry Grove, IL. Rachael shared stories about her work at Locavore Farm with Dave Miller and Steve Rivard, Iroquois Valley’s Co-Founders. She also told us of her dream to expand operations onto a neighboring 29-acre farm. Rachael is part of a growing group of farmers and entrepreneurs in the region influencing Chicagoland's local food scene.
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For two years Rachael and her husband and business partner, Chris, watched as their dream farm property was on the market. They struggled to arrange financing for the $630,000 purchase. Locavore Farm operated on a 5-acre property that they had effectively outgrown. Rachael and Chris knew that their work resonated with people – they run a multi-faceted business growing food and serving it at their Dine on the Land events, in addition to a CSA program, cut flower subscription, and more. They emphasize youth education through immersive summer camps, cooking classes, and gardening workshops. To continue and expand this work, they needed more land. The 29-acre property that they sought to buy includes buildings to support more programming for farmstays and events, plus more acreage to expand their vegetable, flower, and livestock operations.
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Rachael and Chris took a leap of faith and signed a commitment letter to purchase the farm, contingent on financing, which they had not yet secured. When we met them at Rock Creek’s open house, their story immediately resonated with our Co-Founders. To make Rachael’s dream come true, we went to the local community around Kankakee County to raise the initial equity capital. More than twenty people contributed $339,000 and Rachael was able to make a down payment of over 50% of the purchase price. Iroquois Valley funded a mortgage to provide the balance needed to close. Rachael and Dave were still counting money the morning of the closing, but there were more than a few investors ready, willing, and able to put in more capital as needed. The groundswell of community support was exciting to see and reminded us of Iroquois Valley’s beginnings. On February 28, 2022, the Jones family closed on the purchase of Sumac Creek Farm.
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We are excited to welcome Sumac Creek Farm to our portfolio. Pictured are Rachael Jones and Dave Miller. |
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It was only fifteen years ago that a group of ten friends and family pooled their resources to purchase a farm in Iroquois County, one county south of Kankakee County where Sumac Creek Farm is located. That group of ten has grown to over 600 investors and is increasing weekly, as is the number of farmers in our portfolio from different communities across the country. |
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Rachael & Chris grow a variety of vegetables, herbs, and flowers in addition to pasture-raised chickens, sheep, goats, and pigs.
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In order to better address the unique challenges faced by farmers with financial needs, the Co-Founders of Iroquois Valley started a charitable venture, Healing Soils Foundation (HSF). HSF’s mission is to help heal people, communities, and the Earth by providing grants to organic farmers. Initially, HSF is working in collaboration with Potlikker Capital, a non-profit organization supporting farmers of color, to raise money for grants and low interest rate loans to help the Jones and other farmers with financial needs. Some of the funds raised will be used for preparations for the Jones’ busy summer months hosting farm dinners and youth camps, preparing weekly farm boxes, and making improvements to Sumac Creek Farm. This important seed capital, along with the greater community’s collaboration and financing from Iroquois Valley, have helped make Rachael's dream come true.
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Iroquois Valley would like to thank Joe Mantoan, a long-time friend of the Co-Founders for his support on this investment. We are pleased to share that Joe was recently named Chairman of the Board of Healing Soils Foundation. Joe was raised in Kankakee County and is uniquely qualified to run Healing Soils. Joe acquired his significant work ethic from working in the field and at his family's restaurants, and more recently, while impacting organic farm transitions. Joe is working with a dedicated team including board members Julie Ristau (Senior Fellow, Sharing Our Roots), Terra Brockman (Founder, The Land Connection), Wes Jarrell (Farmer, Prairie Fruits Farms & Creamery) and Dave. The Board is advised by Pat Foster, a local attorney who provides pro-bono legal advice.
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How to support Sumac Creek Farm |
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Announcing our new share value & audited financials |
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We are pleased to announce that our Board of Directors recently approved an updated valuation of $686 per share of the common stock of Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT, PBC. This share price reflects our calculation of the REIT’s value as of December 31, 2021. A detailed valuation memo describing how the share price was determined can be found on our website. Also on our website is Annual Report on SEC Form 1-K, which was recently filed with the SEC, and includes our 2021 audited financials.
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Our interim CEO, Andy Ambriole, had the following comments about the 11% increase in our share value:
Farms and food continue to dominate local, national, and international news headlines. Iroquois Valley is the answer to the challenges we witness in our food and farming systems. We continue to relentlessly support our organic farmers, as they transition more land to organic production and diversify into new markets. The "good food" space is becoming crowded - a welcome sight to see so many new mission-aligned friends. With over 15 years of experience, we are increasingly the organization others model themselves after. We distinguish ourselves with our triple bottom line focus: environmental, social, and economic impacts. We believe that it takes all three to successfully change our food system for a better future.
Iroquois Valley’s increased share price largely reflects the increase in farmland values and our growing portfolio of farmland. We anticipate that farmland values will continue to steadily rise and plan to keep making incremental purchases of farmland. Our leases and mortgages will be more important to farmers as interest rates rise and the cost of conventional financing increases. The COVID pandemic accelerated the demand for organic food, extending its double-digit annual growth. The supply of organic food has decreased as the USDA organic standards are strengthened and imports of fraudulent international organic products are eliminated. All of these factors combined point to a bright future for your investment - an investment in hard-working organic independent farmers. With your continued support, Iroquois Valley will provide the financial tools and land access to a diverse group of organic farmers needed to build a future that rewards people, planet, and profit!
We are actively preparing for the re-launch of our offering of REIT Equity Shares with this new share price. To sign-up to be notified when the REIT Offering re-opens, please email coordinator@iroquoisvalleyfarms.com. Our Series IV Soil Restoration Notes continue to accept new investments – for more information, please visit our website.
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The information contained on this website is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security, insurance product, or service. Any product or service discussed in this website is intended for and is only appropriate for accredited and institutional investors and other qualified purchasers as determined by current SEC regulations and orders. The information available on this website is for informational purposes only.
Securities involve risk, and investment may result in a partial or total loss. Some of the statements herein may constitute forward-looking statements under federal securities laws. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including those described in offering circulars prepared for the purpose of offering and selling securities by Iroquois Valley. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Any historical returns, expected returns, or probability projections may not reflect actual future performance.
Iroquois Valley and its affiliates are not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. It is strongly recommended that any purchase or sale decision be discussed with a financial advisor, tax advisor, broker-dealer, or a member of any financial regulatory body. The information contained herein has been provided as an information service only. The accuracy or completeness of the information is not warranted and is only as reliable as the sources from which it was obtained.
In particular, Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT, PBC is offering its common stock for sale pursuant to Tier 2 of Regulation A+, and as such intends to be exempted from state qualification pursuant to federal law. Offerings are only made through our Offering Circular, coming soon. No offer to sell securities or solicitation of an offer to buy securities is being made herein or in any state where such offer or sale is not permitted under the blue sky or state securities laws thereof.
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CONNECTING FARMERS, COMMUNITIES, AND INVESTORS SINCE 2007
As a corporate guideline, we do not look for specific farmland to purchase or finance. We develop relationships with farmers who want to grow their businesses. We move forward when we have a ready, willing, and able farmer.
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Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT | Public Benefit Corporation
Certified B Corporation | Est. 2007
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