The Profitability of Converting Land to Organic

Tim Hammerich

News Reporter

Crops that are certified organic typically command a premium, but once you factor in the changes to the cropping system, are they really more profitable? Craig Wichner of Farmland LP says in his experience, they are. And he’s had to prove this model out over thousands of acres.

Wichner… “We knew that the agricultural practices would work, but we had to demonstrate in numbers, in audited financials, that organic was more profitable than conventional commodity cropping systems. And we have demonstrated that we've demonstrated that we take land that previously rented for $300 an acre. Take it through a three-year organic conversion process and then lease it for $750.”

Wichner says the farmers that are paying the premium cash rent are happy to do so because of how much more profitable they are farming the certified organic land. In fact, Farmland LP has had a hard time keeping up with the farmer demand of renting their properties.

Wichner… “The land that we have available for organic farmers is maxed out. It's fully leased out. We have more demand for our land than we have organic land available. And so that's really kind of continuing to drive the expansion.”

Farmland LP is one of the top 15 farmland managers in the country and the largest focused on organic and regenerative farming.