One answer might surprise you: While trying to track down who recently purchased 14,500 acres of choice farmland in Washington state's Columbia River Basin, researchers at The Land Report discovered the new owner was Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. Mr. Gates owns about 97,934 hectares, accounting for about 0.03% of . 309. Thetech billionaire owns69,071 acres inLouisiana,47,927 acres inArkansas, and 20,588 acres inNebraska. One main benefit to alt assets especially for those whore heavily invested in the stock market is, another scenario where more traditional assets like stocks and, Also, because youre investing in the land itself, your investment not only is quite resistant to depreciation, but also provides some, Theres a lot of little benefits that stack up when talking about farmland, but the biggest is likely the fact that, American farmland produces a lot of exports, exposing you to political risks, Its a little harder to break into farmland than other assets, though this is changing, In the same way you can invest into ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) in the stock market, there exist similar products for farmland called, Bill and Melinda released their latest initiative, , While the global climate change initiative is trying to reduce total emissions by the year 2050, the year 2030 is also important. Bill Gates and conspiracy theories go together like peanut butter and jelly. Earlier this week,North Dakota State Attorney General Drew Wrigley wrote a letter to Red River Trust, stating that its corporations and LLCs were prohibited from owning or leasing farmland or ranchland in the state of North Dakota. Wrigley added that these entities were banned from engaging in farming or ranching.. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is focused partly on agricultural development to support farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. What Bill Gates has to do with livestock, lab-grown meat, Eggflation? See MCL 436.1701., Michigan taxpayers are allowed to take a number of exemptions, depending on the number of people in the taxpayers household, their ages, and other factors, If the defendant is held for more than 24 hours without being brought before the court under subsection (2), the officer in charge of the, An ORV or off-road vehicle is a motor-driven, recreational vehicle capable of driving on a range of terrains not limited to roadways and, Michigan leads the nation in tart cherry production. Now Chinese companies and businessmen are planning to make their home in the United States. It has also funded myriad research facilities and humanitarian operations, focusing on overcoming diseases, climate change, agricultural research, and health and nutrition in underdeveloped areas. Cascade Investment began purchasing farmland in significant strides in 2013. As per the report, the Gates have their own land in at least 18 American states. Gates is not the only billionaire on The Land Report 's list of top private farmland owners. These posts were flagged as part of Instagrams efforts to combat false news and misinformation. Check out:How To Invest In Real Estate With $100. It is not connected to climate. Thats because the old adage goes: Buy landthey arent making it anymore. (Which volcanologists know isnt exactly true, but you get the idea). The billionaire is one of the founders of the Giving Pledge, which asks the world's wealthiest people to give away most of their fortunes to charitable causes. "It is not connected to climate. Bill left most of his professional work at Microsoft at this time to work with Melinda and the foundation. Interestingly enough, though the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is working on this agriculture initiative. Not only was he no longer reliant on his own companys success for his own personal wealth, but he set himself up to make even bigger moves in the decades to come. In 2020, Gates made headlines for becoming the largest private farmland owner in the U.S. Are you ready for alternative proteins made from a volcanic microbe? (here). To better understand these questions, it's helpful to review Bill Gates' financial decision through the years, especially as it relates to Microsoft, Cascade Investments, and The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Our office needs to confirm how your company uses this land and whether this use meets any of the statutory exceptions, such as the business purpose exception, so that we may close this case and file it in our inactive files, the letter added. 2021. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider According to a 2021 report from the United States Department of Agriculture and the National Agriculture Statistics Service, there are 895,300,000 acres of farmland in the United States. In a statement to Reuters, editor of The Land Report and author of the article published by the outlet on farmland owned by Gates, Eric O Keefe, called the claim absurd.. As of 2020, industry reports show he owned about 0.027% of U.S. farmland. By Jenna Hoffman July 5, 2022. Accessed 28 Apr. In fact, he reportedly owns more farmland than any other individual in America. Read also:Which Billionaire Owns The Most Land In The U.S.? 2,167 acres. Neither of these are a perfect option. As of 2020, industry reports show he owned about 0.027% of U.S. farmland. In a Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA) last week, Gates once again fielded a question pertaining to his AG holdings and stated that he actually only owns 1/4000 of all U.S. farmland, or about 270,000 acres spread across 18 different states. While the global climate change initiative is trying to reduce total emissions by the year 2050, the year 2030 is also important. Some of the biggest critics of Gates have deemed his philanthropy as a budding technocracy a tyranny of experts that both centralizes power into a private corporations interests. 1995 - 2023 by Snopes Media Group Inc. KX News' Josh Meny sat down with Vogel who says the Attorney General's office is impeding her investigation into the purchase. Purchasing your own farm outright means that you are not diversified across many farms; just 1. That's a ginormous deal, one that pencils out to almost $12,000 per acre for a whole lot of acres. In his Reddit AMA last year, one user said, "What do you plan to do with all the farmland you have purchased? Bill Gates is best-known for cofounding Microsoft, but he's also a major US landowner, having bought 275,000 acres of farmland. Bill Gates buys farmland in Amish Country. Bill Gates is well-known for building Microsoft, but it's a lesser-known fact that he's also the biggest private landowner in the US. Why doesnt everyone just invest in farmland then? How much land does Russia own in the United States? The Gates Foundation has focused their efforts on alleviating the aftermaths of climate change since its founding. The portion of land that isn't owned by farmers varies widely regionally; in some areas, almost 80 percent of agricultural land is held by non-operators. Corn production is concentrated in the Lower Peninsula with Saginaw and Lenawee counties as Michigans largest producers. While Microsoft took a major hit in the tech crash of 2000, Bill Gates portfolio with Cascade would gain around 40% return in that same year. When it comes to alternative assets, there are a few options investors can look at such as real estate, fine art, foreign stocks, cryptocurrencies, even NFTs (verdict still out on them). NOW WATCH: Bill Gates has a net worth of over $96 billion here's how he makes and spends his money. Oversight. Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. Either that or I had a screw loose. "Our office needs to confirm how your company uses this land and whether this use meets any of the statutory exceptions," the letter said. AcreTrader is one of the most well-established farmland crowdfunding platforms out there. Bill Gates owns more private farmland in the US than anyone else, an analysis by The Land Report found. Essentially, by year 2030, the estimated results of what carbon emissions (and their effect on the environment) will look like in 2050 will be decided in full. Their low fees and competitive returns set them apart from many of the other platforms out there. 3. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Social media users are falsely claiming that Gates owns the majority of U.S. farmland. Bill Gates was right when he sold his own Microsoft stock to diversify through Cascade in 1994. 54. How Many Hours Is It From Detroit To Michigan? An archived version of the tweet can be found (archive.ph/8Tq36). How long is it from Michigan to Detroit? While Gates has spent billions investing in agricultural properties to make them more productive, a growing number of retail investors are getting a piece of the real estate market with as little as $100 through companies backed by high-profile investors like Jeff Bezos. Tue, Feb 28, 2023 LOGIN . Accessed 28 Apr. Bill Gates Uses Farmland as Investment Vehicle, Owning 269,000 Acres of Land. NBC News, https://www.nbcnews.com/now/video/bill-gates-is-nation-s-largest-farmland-owner-114566213692. This position in Microsoft was quickly funneled by Cascade Investment into this long term growth strategy. The tide began to shift in the early 2000s, when institutional investors began to give farmland a closer look. Gates owns roughly 275,000 acres of farmland in the US, according to the 2022 edition of the Land Report 100, a yearly survey of the biggest landowners in the country. While viral conspiracy theories baselessly conjecture that Gates is buying up farmland in order to starve Americans for some unknown reason, there's likely a simpler explanation: Gates makes money off this land. All rights reserved. Why? The Guardian, 5 Apr. The Agriculture Department has said the avian flu outbreak in the U.S. is the main contributor to low inventory and high prices. Billionaire Bill Gates explains why he buys a lot agricultural land - Photo: BENZINGA. Toxic chemicals known as PFAS, or per- and, 2 hours, 2 minutes. A Grimmway Farms employee moves a water pipe at one of their carrot farms in the Antelope Valley. The Gates Foundation isnt the entity utilizing the land, but rather just Bills family office. Bill Gates investments in farmland can be seen as part of this trend. While BlackRock does not directly own single-family houses, as the worlds largest asset manager (here), it owns stock in companies that do. According to lovemoney.com, the church owns more than 70 million hectares. However, when you read between the lines with an objective and open mind, one can infer much. Mar 4, 2009. Bill Gates just bought 2,100 acres of farmland in North Dakota, adding to the 270,000 acres he inexplicably owns throughout the US China also just bought 300 acres there, adding to the 192,000 . No one but Bill Gates knows that answer. as well as other partner offers and accept our. The state is investigating the purchase of potato farmland by the Gates-linked trust, with the states Attorney General writing in a letter that it wasprohibited from owning or leasing farmland or ranchland in the state of North Dakota.. While Gates does not own the majority of U.S. farmland, he is the largest private farmland owner, according to The Land Report. Using those figures, Gates would own about 0.027% of U.S. farmland. Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Gates-affiliated ownership covers vast swaths of farm and timberland, estimated to be 69,071 acres in all by niche land ownership publication The Land Report. One of the more colorful theories pertains to Gatess strange interest in U.S. agriculture, with rumors that the former Microsoft CEO owns upward of 80 percent of farmland in the United States. More than 58 million birds in hundreds of commercial and backyard flocks have been affected since the bird flu outbreak began in February 2022, the Agriculture Department estimated. While much of this land was transferred to the new state of Hawaii in 1959, the federal government did keep some. Over the last decade, Bill Gates has invested in multiple companies, including Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods, that develop plant-based meat alternatives. Costs are expected to fall in the coming weeks as egg-laying flocks are restored. Conspiracy Theorists claimed last year that the Microsoft founder was buying up farmland in the U.S. to starve Americans for some unknown reason, Snopes said, after researchers said in April that the world was facing a potential food shortage due to Russias invasion of Ukraine. Bill Gates owns a ton of farmland in the United Statesas in, about 270,000 acres. to not use their land, is working towards their real agenda. In the wake of this uncertainty, unfounded rumors began to spread that attempted to lay the blame for any coming food shortages on nefarious forces. Document shows Rebekah Jones demonstrated a violation of Floridas Whistleblower Act. The Detroit Land Bank Authority (DLBA) is a public authority that owns and manages approximately 100,000 parcels of property in the City of Detroit making it the citys largest landowner.Detroit Land Bank Authority. AREA 8 CASH CROPS AND DAIRY Area 8 is the leading cash crop area in Michigan. LIVE OAK, Fla. -- The investment company that manages the wealth of the world's richest man, Bill Gates, has been acquiring gobs of farmland in north Florida the past two years . Follow him on Twitter@LucasNolanor contact via secure email at the addresslucasnolan@protonmail.com, EconomyPoliticsTechBill GatesFarmersfarmlandNorth Dakota. . The transitional land he owns in Arizona is reportedly being built into a suburb. Theres a lot of little benefits that stack up when talking about farmland, but the biggest is likely the fact that farmland returns historically out performs most other investment vehicles, and is also comparatively the least volatile asset among the bunch. In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts. Chicken nuggets and cream cheese grow in trays in a South Side lab. What Part Of Michigan Is Considered The Upper Peninsula? "Those people are upset, but there are others that are just livid about this.". Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. In 1994, Bill Gates opened up his family office, Cascade Investment LLC, with trusted wealth manager Michael Larson. Michigan - 2,167 acres; Mississippi - 16,963 acres; Nebraska - 20,588 acres; New Mexico - 1 acre; North Carolina - 874 . Some are near cities and might end up having other uses.". No, its the Roman Catholic Church. Farmland REITs have a high degree of correlation with the overall stock market, and returns tend to be lower than less liquid farmland investments. Today, Bill Gates owns 242,000 acres of farmland in 19 states. Stay up to date with what you want to know. His . He has also written on his personal blog about the future of food, the increasing demand for meat as the global population rises and the environmental effects of livestock farming. The mogul's holdings include large tracts in Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, California, and about a dozen other states. The Bureau of Labor Statistics latest update shows egg prices rose 60% over the last year. Bill Gates owns almost as much U.S. agricultural land as China at 248,000 acres, . The agriculture sector is important. 2022. Gates owns roughly 275,000 acres of farmland in the US, according to the 2022 edition of the Land Report 100, a yearly survey of the biggest landowners in the country. However, the Gates Foundation has been largely transparent at every level of their operations from their objectives, means, successes, and failures. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider Breitbart News previously reported that Gates is Americas largest private owner of farmland. (here). According to a 2022 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Agriculture Statistics Service, there are 895,300,000 acres of farmland in the U.S. Gates owns roughly 242,000 acres, about 0.03% of the total. While Gates is still the top farmland owner in the U.S., not all of the property he owns is farmland. This is especially helpful if, say, the stock market crashed, and you had a more aggressive stock portfolio (or any large stake in stock at all). Gates private office, Gates Ventures, told PolitiFact this claim is false. With her 6.6 billion acres, Elizabeth II is far and away the worlds largest landowner, with the closest runner-up (King Abdullah) holding control over a mere 547 million, or about 12% of the lands owned by Her Majesty, The Queen. stated on February 13, 2023 in a Facebook post, Gates investments in plant-based meat and farmland. The counties with the most total acres of foreign-owned ag land are Keweenaw, Baraga and Alger. As reported by Bloomberg . 242,000 Acres: Bill Gates Now The Largest Owner Of Farmland In America. February 27, 2023, 11:49 AM. Social media post scrambles the facts on high egg prices, Gateway Pundit, "Bill Gates Invested In Artificial Eggs a Decade Before Egg Shortage," Jan. 24, 2023, PolitiFact, "What Bill Gates has to do with livestock, lab-grown meat," May 18, 2020, PolitiFact, "Eggflation? By 2019, the USDA says foreign ownership of U.S. acres exceeded 35.2 million acres, a 60 percent increase from the decade prior. 20006, Florida Farmland originally appeared on Benzinga.com. Water bills are soaring in some areas as infrastructure deteriorates, a recent University of Michigan study found. While private companies and corporations are increasing their ownership of U.S. homes, BlackRock, through its investments, does not own a majority of single-family homes. Bill Gates and his estranged wife Melinda Gates have accumulated more than 269,000 acres of farmland across 18 American states. The Land Reportmagazine reported in January that Bill and Melinda Gates have amassed the largest portfolio of private farmland in the U.S. A $171 million purchase of 14,500 acres of prime eastern Washington farmland in 2018 gave the power couple an estimated 242,000 acres of farmland, which is nearly the size of Hong Kong. While he owns a significant amount, it is a relatively small slice of the nation's nearly 900 million total farm acres. Infected flocks are culled to prevent the flu from spreading. But these companies do not own a majority of U.S. single-family homes. Oversight," June 15, 2018, The Chicago Tribune, "Chicken nuggets and cream cheese grow in trays in a South Side lab. Does Michigan Allow Personal Tax Exemptions? One such rumor claimed that there had been an unusual number of fires at food processing facilities in 2022. ", Gates responded at the time, "My investment team bought the farmland. 1800 I Street NW Or, have more control over the resources we all use and need. AcreTrader has carved out a niche for themselves that has led to rapid market dominance. Since its IPO in 1985, Microsoft has seen continual success. Social media post scrambles the facts on high egg prices, Bill Gates Invested In Artificial Eggs a Decade Before Egg Shortage, Bill Gates is About to Change the Way America Farms, What the plow and lab-grown meat tell us about innovation, Avian influenza outbreaks reduced egg production, driving prices to record highs in 2022, 2022-2023 Confirmations of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Commercial and Backyard Flocks, Bill Gates owns a lot of American farmland, but not the majority, The controversy over Bill Gates becoming the largest private farmland owner in the US, McDonald's french fries, carrots, onions: all of the foods that come from Bill Gates farmland, Fact Check-Bill Gates doesnt own most U.S. farmland; BlackRock doesnt own most houses, Bill Gates and Richard Branson are betting lab-grown meat might be the food of the future, Bill Gates bets on growing demand for sustainable foods, Lab-Grown Meat Backed by Gates, Tyson Foods Faces U.S. 28. Farmland as an investment offers low volatility. Real estate investors overall have also been increasingly targeting single-family homes. Partnering with Monsanto to create these super seeds is also part of the plan. The cost of chicken has also gone up, although not as drastically. State law prohibits corporations, LLCs, and trusts from farming or ranching activities. The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/apr/05/bill-gates-climate-crisis-farmland. Hint, It's Not Bill Gates. Over time, Gates sold personal stock in Microsoft and reinvested it through Cascade Investment. Washington, DC Check out current deals on AcreTrader now! The timeline of events leading to the shortages, claim multiple Instagram posts, goes like this: "2013: Bill Gates invests (in) plant-based eggs, poultry, and meat", "2021: Bill Gates becomes the largest private farmland owner in the U.S.", "2021-2023: Mass chicken and egg shortages hit American farms", The Gateway Pundit, a conservative website, shared a similar claim. Breitbart News reporter Alana Mastrangelo wrote: Gates is now America's largest private farmland owner, with hundreds of thousands of acres spanning across 19 U.S. states, according to the Land Report. Will Bill Gatess green tech initiatives ever intersect with his growing agricultural empire? Every single Republican blocked Ketanji Brown Jacksons SCOTUS appointment.. Well, as with everything in life, there is always a trade-off especially in finance. As the Land Report notes, 24,800 acres of the land is transitional, located on the western edge of Phoenix, the tenth-largest metropolitan area in the country, and the most populous city in Arizona. Gates does not own anywhere close to the majority of America's farmland. These rumors, like the present rumor about Gates buying up the majority of farmland in the United States for nefarious purposes, are all false. Other factors are pandemic-related supply chain issues andholiday demand. What is the most profitable crop in Michigan? Roman Catholic Church: 70 million hectares The largest landowner in the world is not a major oil magnate or a real estate investor. Who is the largest farmer in the United States? While this is certainly a lot of acreage, it represents less than 1% of all the farmland in the United States. However, Microsoft wasn't Bill Gates' only successful venture. Talk about big bets. 801 3rd St. S Bill Gates is Americas biggest farmer, his 269000 acres farmland grows potatoes and carrots. It's not part of his plans to save the planet. So while Dan Gilbert owns the most property downtown, his 30-odd buildings seem small compared to what Kelly, Tatarian, Moroun, and others own. Why? 727-821-9494. stated on January 22, 2023 in an Instagram post: The U.S. chicken and egg shortage is linked to Bill Gates. 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