Management changes at the top of MH Premium Farms have resulted in one of the UK-based investment group’s premier property acquisitions coming back into play.
Chris Bunny, who has managed the company’s “Glaisnock” property at Young since its purchase in 2008, will move closer to Wagga Wagga to take up a senior management role.
The resulting vacancy at “Glaisnock” will see this highly regarded property submitted to auction by CBRE in Young on November 15, when bidding is expected to top $7900 a hectare ($3200/ac).
MH Premium farms is the local agricultural investment holding of London-based expatriate Australian hedge fund manager and rich-lister, Sir Michael Hintze.
Starting in 2007 with the purchase of “Watson Park” at Breadalbane, the group now comprises more than 40 properties across eastern Australia with a combined area of more than 72,000 hectares.
“Glaisnock”, which was previously owned by David and Lynette Whitechurch, is one of several Young district properties held by the group, others including “Burrangong” and “Malabar”.
Situated in “dress circle” mixed farming country at Tubbul, 26 kilometres west of Young, “Glaisnock” is a sizeable property of 983ha (2428ac), all but about four per cent of which is arable.
The property was originally owned by the Rutherford family, before being acquired in 1885 by Scottish-born Charles Crichton, who with his sons at one time held some 4400ha in the Young district.
With his son Walter he established a successful Merino stud on “Glaisnock”, and the property remained in Crichton ownership for close to a century until sold to the previous owners in 1980.
Under present ownership “Glaisnock” is cropped to wheat and canola in rotation with legume-based pastures alongside a prime lamb operation based on 1900 Merino ewes, and opportunity cattle trading.
Land use is divided evenly three ways from season to season between wheat, canola and pasture, with soil testing and yield mapping undertaken regularly to determine fertiliser needs.
As an indication of the country’s productive capability, wheat crops on “Glaisnock” in 2016 recorded an overall average yield of 4.6 tonnes/ha and canola 1.6t/ha. This year’s crops are not included in the sale, but despite the drought there will be wheat and canola crops harvested.
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Ewes are mated to White Suffolk rams and the lambs turned off at export weights from February to April. When seasons permit, weaner or yearling cattle are bought and grown to feedlot entry weights.
Average rainfall is 564mm and a bore delivers reticulated water across the property to 17 troughs, supplemented by 19 dams.
Livestock infrastructure includes a five-stand shearing shed with steel sheep yards, steel Thompson Longhorn cattle yards to work 500 head with curved race and covered working area.
Other working structures include a 740 square metre machinery shed and workshop with sliding doors, a 1000-tonne grain shed, hayshed and 1160t of silo capacity. The five-bedroom weatherboard homestead is an amalgam of two separate homes moved onto the present site by Crichton in about 1910.
Extensively renovated since, it now incorporates a modern kitchen and open-plan living area, dining and entertaining rooms, verandah, tennis court and four-car garage. It is complemented by a two-bedroom cottage.
