A last-ditch attempt to sell off horticultural assets has failed for Australian agribusiness investment firm Timbercorp, which has voluntarily called in the administrators as debt cripples the company.

The company, which runs and leases out a collection of fruit and nut plantations around Australia, declared last week it needed to sell assets in order to keep its head above its A$568m debt, A$20.5m of which was due to be repayed on 1 May.

Mark Korda of administrator KordaMentha said Timbercorp had invested over A$2bn in agribusiness projects for its 18,500 investors since 1992, reported The West Australian.

“The company has been hurt by the combined impact of declining global asset values, tightening credit, the economic downturn and drought,” Mr Korda said in a statement.

He said the administrators would suspend all forestry and horticulture operations while the financial future of the company was established.

The move leaves many of Timbercorp’s properties in limbo. Many of the largest of the company’s holdings are managed by separate businesses.

Timbercorp’s original aim in the horticultural sector was to operate on a larger scale than other Australian players and reap the rewards of the resulting efficiencies.

That strategy means Timbercorp’s holdings represent a significant portion of Australia’s production of crops such as citrus, mangoes, almonds, avocados and grapes, and holds 120,000ha of rural land across the country.

A creditors’ meeting is expected to be announced within eight days.

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