From Wall Street to Chestnut Orchards: The Long-Term Investment Case
June 8, 2026
What does a former Wall Street equity analyst see when he looks at a chestnut orchard? A 30-year investment thesis — and one of the most compelling farm opportunities in the eastern United States right now.
Brett Hundley of Agroforestry Partners spent 15 years as a sell-side equity analyst covering packaged food and agribusiness before pivoting to agroforestry. Today, his fund has planted nearly 1,600 acres of chestnut trees in Kentucky — and the reasons why are worth hearing whether you have 10 acres or 1,000.
In this episode of Branching Out: Growing Together, Melanie Jones sits down with Brett to talk about what makes chestnuts the right crop for the eastern U.S., what he learned on a research trip to Chile, and what it actually takes to build a commercial-scale chestnut operation.
What you’ll learn in this episode:
– Why Brett and his team chose chestnuts over every other tree crop — and how the ecological, economic, and market factors all aligned
– What a 1,600-acre operation in Kentucky looks like from the inside — and what growers of any size can take from it
– The single most important lesson from a research trip to chestnut farms in Chile (hint: it’s about pruning)
– How the U.S. chestnut market compares to mature markets abroad — and why early movers have a genuine advantage right now
– What the next 30 years of domestic chestnut production could look like — and what role independent growers play in getting there
Subscribe to Branching Out: Growing Together wherever you get your podcasts.
Visit unitedchestnuts.com for trees, resources, and community.