Agribusiness keeps moving up: it becomes professionalized with products and strategies for different profiles

Despite the uncertain geopolitical context and the impact of tariff measures on global trade, the prospects for the Agribusiness sector in the Iberian Peninsula are positive. The good start to the year and the appetite for the sector point to a market reactivation with the foreseeable closing of transactions that were delayed or paused last year. The Iberian Agribusiness Report, prepared by CBRE, reflects an institutional investment volume up to May of over 400 million euros, half of all transactions in 2024 at the Iberian level.

Although investment slowed last year due to price mismatches and regulatory complexities, the total volume of institutional investment in Iberia between 2022 and 2024 has exceeded 4.1 billion euros. This data reflects the attractiveness of the sector, which is characterized by being less volatile than other traditional and alternative assets. Institutional investment in recent years is driven by attractive long-term returns and the possibility of developing diversified portfolios.

Institutional capital now represents half of the investment in the Iberian agribusiness sector.

The report reveals that specialized Agribusiness funds, typically based in the US, Canada, and the UK, and with a long-term perspective seeking large investments, account for 25% of the capital invested between 2022 and 2024. They are followed by generalist funds, which represent 14%, seeking to diversify their investment portfolio and are starting to allocate capital to the sector or increasing it progressively. In the case of family offices, they concentrate 10% of the investment with an appetite for small and medium-sized tickets.

For their part, industrial producers/marketers, both Iberian and foreign, account for 51% of the capital invested in the sector in recent years. They are characterized by complementing their offer with new locations, for example, in the fresh fruit segment, seeking to complement their production windows throughout the year.

Iberia has reached the first position in agricultural production value in Europe in 2024, with record figures. It is the most institutionalized investment market, with growing geo-strategic appeal.

"The professionalization of the sector is favoring the entry of different types of players into a market that is getting bigger and bigger."

Manuel Albuquerque, leader of Agribusiness for Southern Europe (Spain, Portugal, and Italy) at CBRE.

Capital allocation to agribusiness grows year after year

Sophistication throughout the sector's value chain, greater specialization, and high returns in recent decades are some of the keys to the agricultural investment market. Globally, at CBRE we observe a progressive increase in funds raised in the sector since the year 2000, when insignificant volumes were registered, up to the more than 200 billion raised cumulatively until last year. Strategies are diversifying, and although versatile private equity continues to lead capital raising, Farmland funds are close behind, and venture capital and AgTech funds are taking positions. The region with the highest number of funds and amount raised to date is North America, but it is followed by Europe where the average ticket per fund is higher (approx. €300M).

The transaction volumes at the Iberian level show how Southern Europe is consolidating as a strategic region for the development of the Agribusiness sector.

Iberia is one of the few areas in the world where it is possible to invest in high-value crops in an attractive environment of lower volatility, good returns, and manageable risks. Water is an essential element. 20% of arable land is irrigated in Iberia and Italy compared to the barely 5% in the rest of Europe. Other factors such as climate, soil quality, or the size of the farms make Iberia and Italy an attractive and real investment opportunity in the sector.

Grain cereals and olive groves are the crops with the largest planted area in the Iberian Peninsula, with around 5,900,000 ha and 3,000,000 ha, respectively. In the case of nuts (almonds, pistachios, walnuts...), in the period between 2013-2023, the cultivated area has grown by almost 300,000 ha. In the last year, the area dedicated to olives and nuts (pistachios in Spain and almonds in Portugal) in Iberia has increased and that of vineyards has decreased. In Spain, less surface area is dedicated to citrus fruits, while in Portugal the avocado gains importance.

Regarding prices, for most products they have fluctuated considerably, especially in year-round crops, such as olive oil, with drops of 55% in the last twelve months, and almonds, with increases of 69%. In the case of seasonal products, the average price of avocado has gone from €2.59/kg in the 2023/2024 season to €2.06/kg in 2024/2025. Tree oranges have seen their average price fall by 11%. At the opposite extreme, tomatoes rise on average by 25%, followed by strawberries (+19%) and blueberries (+18%).

Agricultural land prices differ between Iberian regions

After five years of generalized increases in land prices, a trend towards stabilization is observed in regions with more consolidated markets. However, certain areas of Spain, such as the north of Cáceres, Aragón, and the Gaditan drylands, together with the Portuguese region of Ribatejo, continue to register price increases above 10%.

Factors such as slope, climate, soil quality, and, above all, water availability, influence price variations. However, they continue to provide clear long-term revaluation potential, because the supply of irrigated land is limited and is a scarce, necessary, and non-depreciating asset. At CBRE, we expect that the moderation of price movements in the short term will lead to an alignment between buyers and sellers in 2025.

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