Sale looms for ailing honey firm

Negotiations are under way this week for a potential sale. Photo / File

Specialist manuka honey exporter New Zealand Honey Specialties - trading as the New Zealand Honey Company - owes more than $1.4 million to unsecured creditors, shareholders and staff.

However, negotiations are under way this week for a potential sale, receivers have confirmed.

Established in 2005 and Dunedin-based, it was placed in voluntary receivership by its shareholders in mid-December and Dunedin receivers Insolvency Management have posted their first report.

Other than stock sold in the domestic market, no assets had been disposed of, Insolvency Management receiver Iain Nellies said yesterday.

He confirmed negotiations were under way with a domestic buyer, which could be concluded this week.

The first report outlined assets, including domestic and United Kingdom stock, were estimated at $511,615, while overall debt at November 21 was more than $1.3m.

Unsecured creditors were owed $809,658, shareholder advances were $590,189 and employee entitlements $24,054.

Nellies said despite the potential sale, he was unable to estimate what any shortfall might be. The UK was New Zealand Honey Company's biggest market, and it also exported to Hong Kong, Singapore, China and South Korea from its Mosgiel factory.

New Zealand Honey Specialties' majority shareholder is Alpine Honey Specialties, with a 48.97 per cent stake, followed by Southern Capital, with a 45.19 per cent stake, plus seven minority shareholders of 1 per cent or less.

Its directors were Duncan McKinlay, of Auckland, Chris Swann, of Dunedin, and Peter Ward, of Wanaka, who is the company chairman.

Last year's honey season was counted as one of the worst in about 30 years in the Dunedin area.

In 2005 the company topped national business growth awards, at the time being New Zealand's single largest producer of specialty honeys.