Investment options under scrutiny

Making dairy farm businesses attractive for investors was the goal of a Mount Gambier seminar hosted by ANZ, PIRSA and the SADA Fresh-funded Dairy Industry Fund.

SA Dairyfarmers Association president David Basham said the Dairy Investment Seminar, held last Thursday, was about providing information on the options available to dairyfarmers.

Keynote speaker and Bega Cheese executive chairman Barry Irvin said it was important to consider the status of the business, before looking at the next step.

Bega Cheese was formed as a cooperative in NSW in 1899, and when Mr Irvin became involved with the board he said Bega produced about 3000 tonnes of product annually.

Today the company is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange and sells about 210,000 tonnes of product each year.

Mr Irvin said that shift involved considering the company’s competitive advantage, and asking for help when it was needed.

“Success is a cultural thing as much as something we can design,” he said.

“The best thing I could do is create the right culture to make sure the company knew what to do with its opportunities.”

He favoured a “strategy then structure” approach.

“We work out what we want to achieve, when we want to do it and why, then we create the structure,” he said.

“There is no such thing as always being right, but gather information and talk to successful people.

“People will share with you, even your competitors, if you talk to people.”

ANZ Agribusiness manager SA/NT Stephen Radeski said the growing call for agriculture exports would lead to an increase in capital inflow required to leverage these opportunities.

“By 2030 there is a 5 million tonne gap in Asia in their capacity to feed themselves,” he said.

“Australia has a geographic advantage but there are other suppliers that have identified that gap too.”

Managing director of the SA agricultural consultancy firm Rural Directions David Heinjus said “megatrends” such as Asian growth and rising interest in agriculture were bringing a sharp increase in enquiries from investors.

“I’ve been working in agriculture for 20 years and I’ve never seen it like it is now,” he said.

A panel of speakers advised farmers to start getting ready for investment by gathering their financial and historical information.

Partner in law firm Piper Alderman Simon Venus said having documents ready could aid in smoothing the process later.

“When people are looking at acquiring (a business) they look very closely at the financial information and historical aspect, not so much at forecasts,” he said.

A key piece of advice was to strongly consider expectations.

Mr Radeski warned that each form of capital that came onto a farm would come with a “trade-off”.

“You need to work out what that trade-off is,” he said.

“Farmers should be asking themselves ‘do I know what I want?’ and more importantly, ‘do I know what I don’t want?’

“There is a cost in capital, not just in terms but in the way you want to manage.”

Mr Venus said investors were rarely just looking to purchase a farm.

Instead, they were looking to form partnerships with the right people.

“They’re investing in a partner,” he said.

These people were often found through networks, with good relationships and trust factors.