Tribal Council Reforms Will Improve and Expand Agriculture On Tribal Lands
Parker, Arizona. — Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) Tribal Council announced a major investment in the Tribe’s farming businesses today following a landmark agreement by the Tribe to secure access to financial capital. Under the terms of the agreement, the Tribe’s existing enterprise, CRIT Farms, will transform into ‘Amat Kuhwely, with an investment of $23 million in the coming years to upgrade and expand CRIT’s farming operation through optimization of the operation, and improving water use efficiency on the Farm.
“CRIT Farms has been the anchor of our agricultural economy and this investment empowers a great economic development opportunity for our Tribe,” said Amelia Flores, Chairwoman of the Colorado River Indian Tribes. “CRIT’s members have told us that they want the most efficient, effectively run enterprises, and today’s announcement is a big step in that direction, as we grow our farming business.”
Founded in 1973 to provide revenue for the Colorado River Indian Tribes, CRIT Farms has become one of the largest farming operations in Western Arizona. But after significant growth over the last fifty years, access to additional financial capital is necessary to sustain the Tribe’s position as a market leader. Plans for bringing previously fallowed acreage back into production, expanding CRIT’s agricultural market reach, as well as developing CRIT’s unused California acreage (and water) are a cornerstone to this investment.
In partnership with CRIT, Indigena Capital will facilitate the investment of tens of millions of dollars to improve water efficiency and administrative capacity on the existing farm and will expand its operations in the coming years. This investment will provide the capital necessary to address overdue investment in CRIT Farms infrastructure and help the Tribe continue to expand its strong position in the market for years to come.
“Our people must continue to receive the cultural and economic benefits from our water; we accomplished that today,” continued Chairwoman Flores. While Indigena Capital is the financial partner for the farming operation, under the terms of the agreement with Indigena, the tribe will maintain exclusive and sovereign control of CRIT’s water.
After five decades as CRIT Farms, the tribal farming operation is also rebranding as ‘Amat Kuhwely. The new name—a Mohave language reference for what today is called Parker, the place that was dug, — better reflects CRIT’s ancestral connection to the land and water that provides economic bounty for its people. “I have often stated that we have always been farmers, and we will always be farmers. This reinvestment is a confirmation of that,” said Chairwoman Flores.
The investments on the CRIT Reservation come at a critical time in the Colorado River Basin. As the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation undertakes an ambitious plan—known as the post-2026 guidelines—that will re-work how it manages the River, developing farming operations at CRIT opens a diverse array of additional prosperous opportunities for the Tribe.
The Colorado River Indian Tribes is a sovereign nation headquartered in Parker, Arizona. The CRIT reservation was established in 1865 by President Abraham Lincoln and spans more than 300,000 acres along both sides of the Colorado River in western Arizona and southeastern California. There are currently more than 70,000 acres of farmland on the Reservation, supported by the tribe’s present perfected right to more than 719,000 acre-feet of water. CRIT has the right to develop up to 99,000 acres of farmland in Arizona, as well as 7,000 acres of farmland in California.
CRIT has made thoughtful and measured investments over the past several years, including expanding its Farms’ footprint by 300%, that has positioned it to achieve meaningful success in the future. Their evolving approach to securing third party investment capital and deploying that capital in a measured and disciplined manner, will provide significant returns to CRIT for generations to come.
Indigena Capital, an investment firm that exclusively partners with Tribal Nations in the United States and First Nations in Canada, has three decades of experience as a capital provider for targeted industries such as agriculture, real estate, renewable power, infrastructure, and energy development. With over 70 transactions and $2.5 billion sourced investments in both direct and joint venture capital, Indigena celebrates the announcement of the ‘Amat Kuhwely agricultural business with the Colorado River Indian Tribes.
