2026-2030 Strategic Business Plan

Reviving one of West Africa's largest integrated irrigated farms

Scalable alfalfa & forage production from Senegal's Saint-Louis region - built for the premium GCC export market.

$25.6B
Global alfalfa market
26,500 Ha
LFT concession
Aug 2026
Restart planting begins
2,000 Ha
Phase I platform
The Opportunity

Africa is the future of farming - West Africa leads

Africa holds 65% of the world's undeveloped agricultural land. Senegal pairs proven irrigated agriculture and secured water rights with Atlantic export access and GCC-aligned capital.

Secured water & land

40-year presidential concession on the Senegal River.

Atlantic gateway

DP World's Port of Dakar - most efficient in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Aligned capital

GCC logistics investment (DP World) already anchored in Senegal.

Structural demand

Persistent global shortage of premium >18% protein forage.

Market Opportunity

A premium, import-dependent GCC alfalfa market

Gulf dairy demand keeps rising while Saudi Arabia and the UAE phase out water-intensive domestic fodder - creating durable, premium-priced import demand Senegal is positioned to serve.

$350-410
GCC landed price / MT (CIF)
>100k MT
Export potential at 10,000 Ha
>18%
Protein - premium grade
~100%
GCC commercial alfalfa imported
The Asset - LFT Farms

Land, water rights & standing infrastructure

  • ~26,500 hectares under a 40-year presidential concession, scaling productive operations toward 20,000 Ha.
  • US$70M+ in prior developer investment already in the ground.
  • 106 km of water channels, pumping stations, roads, warehouses & operating bases.
  • Continuity - pivot production ongoing under LFT President Gora Seck.

Saint-Louis

Senegal River valley location.

40-year tenure

Presidential concession, renewing with the restart.

Dual-track

Export pivots + low-input local grazing.

Solar-first

Powering 2,000 Ha at steady state.

The Model

Export precision meets local food security

A dual-track operating model, modern regenerative agronomy, and a solar-first energy shift that pays for itself in under two years.

Precision irrigation

Scaling from 400 Ha (2026) to ~2,000 Ha (2030) with US-OEM Reinke pivots - 10 alfalfa harvests a year.

Solar & battery power

Solar and battery power sharply cut pivot fuel costs at scale, with a payback of under two years.

Regenerative soils

Low-cost AgLime & gypsum plus digital agronomy lift yield and water retention across the platform.

Location & Logistics

On the fastest trade corridor into the Gulf

Cargo transships via Tangier, Algeciras and Valencia into GCC loops at Jebel Ali and Dammam - anchored by DP World's Dakar terminal.

Senegal to GCC shipping corridor
$340M
DP World investment in Dakar
850-900k
TEU annual capacity
32-45 days
Transit to the GCC
560
Reefer plugs · 13m draft
Phased & De-risked

A deliberate, de-risked path from restart to scale

A staged build develops the 2,000 Ha Phase I platform through 2030, then Phase II scales to 10,000 Ha under pivot irrigation.

FY2026

400 Ha
Restart - corn-led early planting.

FY2027-29

Ramp
Scale to 2,000 Ha; alfalfa leads.

FY2030

Steady state
First full year at 2,000 Ha.

Phase II

10,000 Ha
Pivot irrigation, biofuel & carbon.

Community & ESG

Lasting benefits for the Senegal River Valley

Beyond production and jobs, LFT invests in education, healthcare access and economic opportunity - partnering with trusted local organizations and community leaders.

Education & skills

Literacy, vocational & agricultural training for youth and women with Jeunesse Sénégal.

Healthcare

Maternal & child health - prenatal/natal exams, ultrasound access and transport.

Livelihoods

Grazing access, employment and entrepreneurship in modern, productive agriculture.

Leadership & Governance

A tier-1 team with 100+ years of applied experience

Operators who have built and run large-scale irrigated agriculture, backed by a board with sovereign-scale capital and resource expertise.

Operating leadership

Mike Rhodes
Chief Executive Officer

Mike Rhodes

40+ years in large-scale alfalfa & forage across Africa
  • Leads the African Agriculture (AAGR) platform as CEO
  • Hands-on management of 16,000+ Ha across 8+ East & West African nations
  • 40+ years farming alfalfa & forage - from a family farm in Utah to commercial scale
  • Deep, active community engagement across Senegal & West Africa
Arama Kukutai
Executive Chair

Arama Kukutai

Two decades in agtech investment, farming & sustainability
  • Co-founder & Partner, Finistere Ventures - a leading agri-food-tech VC
  • Former CEO of Plenty; former Executive Chairman, PKW Farms (NZ)
  • Led New Zealand's Trade & Investment agency in North America
  • World Economic Forum contributor; World Class New Zealander (2022)
Connect on LinkedIn
Dr. Michael Pereira
Chief Agronomist

Dr. Michael Pereira

Irrigated forage agronomy, soil health & yield optimization
  • Directs the farm's agronomy program - crop selection & rotation
  • Leads soil optimization (AgLime, gypsum) & nutrient balancing
  • Expertise in alfalfa/forage production & precision irrigation
  • Champions digital agronomy & data-driven water management

Gora Seck

LFT President - Senegal operations

Board

Russell Read
Vice Chair

Russell Read, PhD

40+ years institutional investing · sovereign & pension CIO
  • Former CIO - Alaska Permanent Fund, Gulf Investment Corporation (Kuwait) & CalPERS
  • Chaired the President's Working Group on Financial Markets under Treasury Secretary Paulson
  • Founder & Managing Partner, C Change Group - sustainable natural-resources infrastructure
  • PhD Political Economy (Stanford); MBA Finance (Chicago)
Connect on LinkedIn
Gary LaDrido
Board Member

Gary LaDrido

Impact investor · energy transition & climate-tech · $20B+ transactions
  • 20 years in Impact Investment Banking™; former Morgan Stanley Clean Energy Team
  • Board member, Agenernomics - energy crop ~90% more efficient as biofuel & SAF feedstock
  • Advisory Board, Generation Food Rural Partners; Chair, WaterRising Institute
  • Founder & Managing Partner, DCB Sports - global ventures & governance
Connect on LinkedIn

Executive and board biographies drawn from public sources; Chair, Arama Kukutai, and Board also includes a nominee representing legacy AAGR shareholders.

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