In November 2025, Peoples Company completed the acquisition of Murray Wise Associates LLC (MWA), headquartered in Champaign, IL. This marked Peoples Company’s eighth acquisition in an active 18-month growth period for the firm. While the transaction made strong market sense, it was equally defined by legacy: MWA traces its roots to one of the most influential figures in farmland investment.
A Legacy Built on Farmland
Murray Wise founded MWA's predecessor, Westchester Group, Inc. (WGI), in the mid-1980s in Champaign, IL, after acquiring an Illinois farm management business from an Iowa-based firm. What began as a traditional farm management and brokerage operation quickly evolved into something more pioneering. Coming out of the farm crisis of the 1980s, Murray identified farmland as an emerging investible asset class, a thesis that would prove remarkably prescient.
WGI was among the first firms to structure farmland investments for non-traditional buyers, developing a series of limited partnerships in the late 1980s and early 1990s that allowed smaller investors to pool capital and acquire farms. Murray's investment philosophy was straightforward and enduring: buy high-quality farms in high-quality regions, work with high-quality tenants, and you will create value. That philosophy gained mainstream recognition in 1988 when Barton Biggs, then Chairman of Morgan Stanley Asset Management, published his widely circulated note, Buy a Farm and Get Rich Slowly.
WGI didn't stop there. Murray was among the first to introduce farmland as an asset class to institutional investors including pension funds, positioning it as a portfolio diversifier with low correlation to equities and strong inflation-hedging characteristics. Through the 1990s, WGI expanded its investor base and its farmland footprint, both domestically and internationally. By the early 2000s, the firm had established itself as one of the largest and most sophisticated farmland asset managers in the world, with clients ranging from family offices to major pension funds, including TIAA-CREF.
From WGI to MWA
In 2010, TIAA-CREF acquired WGI's asset management division which would ultimately become Nuveen Natural Capital. Murray Wise retained the remaining operations and reorganized them under two entities: Murray Wise Associates, focused on farm management, brokerage, and auctions; and Murray Wise Capital (MWC), a specialized practice serving agribusiness clients in complex and distressed situations, including bankruptcies, foreclosures, and debt restructurings.
MWC built a strong reputation handling high-stakes transactions across the country. Among its most notable engagements was the 2013 liquidation of more than 10,000 acres of vegetable ground in Florida and Virginia, along with fresh packing facilities and related improvements, for a total sale price exceeding $75 million. MWC has since been engaged in similarly complex situations nationwide, from recapitalizing cherry growers in California to dairy and citrus liquidations in New Mexico, Utah, and Florida, as well as greenhouse liquidations across the U.S.
Peoples Company is well-positioned to leverage MWC's expertise going forward, offering lenders, borrowers, receivers, and other stakeholders a trusted partner for navigating complex agribusiness transactions.
Key Talent Joining Peoples
Three key MWA team members join Peoples as part of the acquisition. Eric Sarff, who served as President of MWA, joins Peoples as Vice President. In this role, Sarff plays a central part in shaping company strategy and execution while providing leadership across Peoples Company's service divisions. His perspective on the acquisition speaks to the opportunity ahead: "Joining forces with Peoples Company creates tremendous opportunities for our clients and team. Peoples Company's national reach and comprehensive service platform will allow us to deliver even greater value while continuing to provide the personalized service our clients expect."
Harrison Freeland, who led MWC at MWA, continues this specialized work at Peoples Company as Specialty Asset Advisor, bringing his deep experience in distressed agribusiness transactions to the company’s clients.
Elizabeth Strom joined MWA in 2021 as a farm manager and rose quickly to within the management team, ultimately overseeing a farm management portfolio that had grown to nearly 50,000 acres across 10 states, serving multiple institutional clients. At Peoples Company, Elizabeth joins as Director of Asset Management, where she serves as the primary point of contact between Peoples Company Capital Markets (PCCM) clients and the farm managers overseeing individual properties. Her role ensures consistent, high-quality reporting and hands-on guidance for the farm managers delivering service to PCCM's client base.
A Stronger Platform
The MWA acquisition strengthens Peoples Company's position as a full-service farmland solutions provider. By uniting two significant legacies in the industry and adding experienced talent, Peoples Company now offers unparalleled capabilities across every stage of the farmland investment lifecycle, from acquisition and management to disposition and distressed asset resolution.
