A deal has been made for the sale of Alberta Oats, one of Alberta’s largest oat processing companies that went into voluntary receivership in August.
The oats facility has been sold for just over $5 million, said Don MacLean, a senior vice-president with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Edmonton.
“We have a deal,” said MacLean.
The sale has to be approved by a provincial court. The buyer is a numbered company that does not want to be identified, but it will act as a capital company and keep the existing management in place, said MacLean.
Read Also
Government, industry seek canola tariff resolution
Governments and industry continue to discuss how best to deal with Chinese tariffs on Canadian agricultural products, particularly canola.
Throughout the receivership process Alberta Oats kept operating, a key to maintaining customer loyalty and business relationships, said MacLean.
The company specialized in processing human consumption oat groats and selling oat groat products to international buyers. The company was hurt by drought and the inability of farmers to fulfil their contracts. It was forced to buy oats of lesser quality at a higher price on the spot market to meet business commitments.
This diminished the company’s equity and owner John Bokenfhor got a court order by consent in an attempt to salvage the business.
“It’s a profitable business,” said MacLean.
Now that a deal has been made, it must be approved by a provincial court judge.
The deal could go before a judge early this month and if approved, an appeal period of three weeks will follow. MacLean said he is not expecting anyone to appeal the sale. The sale will likely be final by the end of this month.
The company was licensed and bonded by the Canadian Grain Commission.
Paul Graham, the commission’s information officer, said 10 claims were filed to it after the company went into receivership.
Three of the claims were disallowed, two because they were beyond the 90-day claim period. Farmers are only able to claim for grain within 90 days of delivery. The third claim was disallowed because it came from a company, not a producer. Those three claims were worth $34,116.
The other seven claims were valued at $134,145 and will be paid in full, said Graham.
