Tasmanian seafood company Huon Valley Seafoods collapses

Huonville, Tasmania-based Huon Valley Seafoods has collapsed and has entered liquidation, according to media reports and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

The company was put into liquidation, with Louisa Sijabat from Merchants Advisory appointed as liquidator, according to an ASIC notice.

According to a report by News Corp Australia, the company collapsed amid a falling out between Huon Valley Seafoods’ founders and an investor who took control of the firm. Sijabat told the Mercury that creditor claims have amounted to at least AUD 3 million (USD 1.9 million, EUR 1.7 million).

“Over the last couple of years the company had been in the process of being sold to some investors in Melbourne and there appears to have been a significant falling out between the former directors of the company, who are based in Huonville, and the new directors in Melbourne,” Sijabat said. “As far as I understand it, operations have declined in the last couple of years.”

Since the liquidator was appointed, Huon Valley Seafoods’ website has gone offline.

Huon Valley Seafood was a vertically integrated seafood company, selling a number of different Tasmanian seafood products, including mussels, oysters, squid, urchins, Atlantic salmon, and sardines. The company had control of its full supply chain, including harvesting, processing, and logistics. The company had both wild-capture fishery operations and aquaculture operations.

Now, Sijabat – in an update on her LinkedIn profile – said the company’s assets are up for sale.

“We are working with all key stakeholders to achieve the best possible outcome for this company and its creditors,” Sijabat said. “As part of this, I am also selling the assets (plant and equipment, and/or business), of the company.”  

Photo courtesy of Louisa Sijabat/LinkedIn