Aussie almond producer seeks sale-and-leaseback investors

Select Harvests, an Australian almond producer, is seeking expressions of interest from investors to enter into a sale-and-leaseback arrangement with the company, it said on Friday.

It has hired PPB Advisory to manage the process.

Select Harvests, an Australian Securities Exchange-listed firm, acquired undeveloped farmland last August and now needs to raise capital to plant around 5,000 acres. The deal would also include ownership of two orchards that were acquitted at the same time, according to the announcement.

Select Harvests “will develop the orchards, take the operational and agricultural risk, process and market almonds” reads the release.

Interested parties should get in touch with Paul Thompson, managing director; Paul Chambers, chief financial officer or Andrew Angus, investor relations.

Leasing has been picking up pace in Australia’s agriculture market recently; last week  listed real estate investment trust Rural Funds Group entered into a leasing contract with Olam Orchards, the operations arm of the Singaporean agribusiness, to develop and operate 600 hectares of almond orchards in New South Wales.