I recently discovered a new investment company; www.robinia-invest.com , which  is based in Germany and promotes ecologically, socially and economically responsible ‘robinia’ tree plantations in eastern Germany. Term is 8-10 years with a ROI of about 8-12% per year. Instead of cultivating trees to be processed in to planks or veneer, Robinia Invest cultivates trees to make poles. They calculate only about £ 8,50 per tree after 10 years, so nothing shocking about that. £ 8,50 per tree that’s 10 years old is not all that much.

Here are some earmarks of their participations;

• 8-10 year investment
• Minimum investment € 2,000; trade is in euros, that’s about £ 1,700.
• Four guarantees offered:
• (1) mortgage collateral (notarised deed/land lease);
• (2) Maintenance Guarantee;
• (3) Replacement guarantee (1st year replacement if suffer 25% loss) ;
• (4) commercially insured against fire and storm damage.
• Robinia-Invest’s plantations will be FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified.

The main differences with a Robinia investment instead of an investment in lets say Teak-plantations are the following;

This is a welcome change from the familiar teak companies who are all based in central or south America. There are of course a few advantages to investing in Germany instead of south or central America;

-        trade is in strong euro, not weak US dollar

-        land value in Germany is much higher then that of south or central America

-        the plantations in Germany are insured against fire and storm damage, which the Teak companies cannot offer.

-        Germany is of course part of the EU and politically a economically very strong and stabile. That of course cannot be said of the countries in south and central America. Look what happened in Honduras recently?

Anyway, you might want to check this site out if you want to invest your money in something which is both for the environment and for your financial future.

Karl Michaels