The Forest Enterprises Australia Growers Group (FEA Growers Group) has called for urgent financial assistance to its fighting fund.
In a letter to its growers group dated 24 December 2010, the FEA Growers Group urged those affected by the collapse of the agribusiness firm and who are not yet members of FEA Growers Group to join.
“We have gone to growers and dealer groups requesting funding support however we are seriously underfunded,” a FEA Growers Group statement said.
“We are at risk of not being able to pay the legal and professional fees necessary to protect grower interests.”
The FEA Growers Group is asking growers to contribute $100, financial advisers to contribute $1000, small licensees with FEA clients to contribute $5000 and larger licensees with FEA clients to contribute $10,000.
The group has a financial target of $500,000, with the current total raised standing at close to $100,000.
On 21 December last year, the Federal Court handed down a positive for FEA Growers Group and the 14,000 investors affected by the fall of FEA, the letter said.
FEA Growers Group won around $11 million to claim as a rental offset on behalf of growers.
The funding arose from a previous financial commitment in favour of FEA from its parent company.
FEA Growers Group chairman Rob Burns said the $11 million would help cover internal rent payments on the 17 managed investment schemes to beyond July and August 2011.
Burns said the money would also mean voluntary payments requested from growers by FEA’s responsible entity and administrator, BRI Ferrier, can be reforecast and substantially reduced.
The court awarded funding would also help FEA’s secured creditors to work “towards implementing commercial propositions of benefit to all parties”, he said.
“This result benefits all growers and was achieved by a great deal of co-operation between the FEA Growers Group and BRI Ferrier in respect of their legal arguments and commercial discussions,” Burns said.
“BRI Ferrier are currently seeking clarification of aspects of the judgment.”
FEA company directors placed the firm into voluntary administration on 14 April 2010.
