Josh Allen has plans to grow 1,000 acres of pistachios for second income stream
Josh Allen‘s family business is farming. The Allens have tended the same 3,000 acres in Fresno County for nearly a half century. The Bills quarterback wanted nothing to do with planting and harvesting after the land was overwhelmed by intense drought. He’s changed his mind.
The Allens planted cotton, alfalfa and cantaloupes on their land. Now, Josh Allen has helped add a new crop — pistachios. Eventually, the Bills star wants to plant trees on 1,000 acres.
Allen also is evolving into an advocate for farming. He was a star of his Future Farmers of America group back in high school in Firebaugh, Calif. Allen put all that to good use this week for the premiere of the Like a Farmer podcast. He goes down as the pod’s very first guest.
“The stuff I’m doing is hard — working out, keeping your body in shape,” Josh Allen said on the podcast. “But it’s not harder than moving an irrigation pipe in 115 degrees.”
His dad, Joel, already had planted some pistachio trees on the land. Josh eventually wants the farm to devote 1,000 acres to the crop. Allen’s home state produces 98 percent of the country’s pistachio crop. And his home county is fertile country.
Josh Allen joins Joe Burrow as NFL farmer quarterbacks
Josh Allen isn’t the only NFL quarterback who is flirting with farming. Joe Burrow also started investing in agriculture earlier this year. Burrow is part of a group of 20 athletes who bought a farm in Iowa through a $5 million fund. Other investor athletes include Kevin Gausman, Kemba Walker, Khris Middleton, Zach Ertz and Sam Hubbard.
The Burrow farm, which is a plush 104 acres in northern Iowa, will feature corn and soybeans. The Patricof Co. manages the money. There also are other traditional investors including JP Morgan.
The group of athletes will look for diverse agricultural assets, with plans to buy as many as four more farms. The group will lease the land back to the farmers. And in turn, they will receive a single-digit-percentage annual payment.
Maybe Burrow or the other investors will make appearances on the Like a Farmer podcast. It’s sponsored by AgAmerica, a financial lender to many of this country’s farmers and ranchers. Josh Allen also will be involved with some branded merchandise for AgAmerica to help bring even more attention to the farming community.
Meanwhile, his primary business is football. He and the Bills are finishing mini camp this week. It’s about to heat up because preseason training camp starts next month. And as his dad always tells him “you bloom where you’re planted.”