The Vancouver Sun reports that the British Columbia Supreme Court ordered the now-closed BC Tree Fruits Cooperative, which had been in operation since 1936, to sell its assets following a petition from the cooperative for creditor protection.
The cooperative announced it would cease operations on July 25 due to low estimated fruit volumes, weather effects on crops, and difficult market and financial conditions.
There is interest from buyers from some of BC Tree Fruits’ packing facilities, The Sun reported. The cooperative’s facility in Vonn, British Columbia, has been finalized for $22 million and should close this week, according to The Sun, which reported that bidding deadlines for the cooperative’s other assets will end in the next few weeks and will close by November but there is some flexibility to allow for more time for buyers.
The Sun reported more than 73,000 bins have been shipped to packers after an emergency table connected 120 of 179 co-op members with private packing and the province provided $15 million in crop loss claims and $5 million for a tree fruit resiliency program.
