ONE of the subsidiaries of the failed R.M. Williams Agricultural Holdings (RMWAH) business has followed the parent company into receivership.
On June 28 The Land broke the news PPB Advisory had been appointed as receivers and managers of RMWAH, and on Wednesday afternoon the firm announced its partners Stephen Parbery and Greg Quinn had also taken on the same role for the Inglewood Farms subsidiary.
Inglewood Farms employs about 100 people and is the largest producer of free-range organic poultry in Australia and the third-largest in the southern hemisphere.
In addition to being placed in receivership, shareholders have sought to withdraw use of the R.M. Williams brand by Inglewood Farms.
The business has an 80 per cent share of the Australian organic free-range poultry market.
The business operates from 1710 hectares of certified organic land in south-east Queensland near Inglewood, holds about 300,000 birds and processes about 27,000 each week through its on-site plant.
While RMWAH went into receivership on June 26, at the time PPB Advisory said the four main subsidiaries underneath the parent company - the organic grain properties in south-west Queensland, Inglewood Farms, Henbury Station in the Northern Territory and beef properties near Darwin - were not affected.
In a statement PPB Advisory said its appointment as receivers and managers of Inglewood Farms followed notification from the company's directors that they intended to resign.
The statement said this ocurred after Inglewood Farms' shareholders indicated they would not provide additional funding to support the company's ongoing operations, forcing the company's secured creditor to appoint receivers and managers.
PPB Advisory is undertaking an urgent review of Inglewood Farms to ensure operations continue with minimal disruption and to prepare the business for a possible sale, the statement said.
"Our immediate priority is to support the experienced team at Inglewood Farms so the business can continue operating while we undertake this review," Mr Parbery said.
"We are working with a number of stakeholders to try to secure the future of the business."
PPB Advisory has appointed accounting firm RSM Bird Cameron as voluntary administrators to ensure creditors' interests are protected.
