Crafar Farms for Judicial Review?

For Immediate Release

19 January, 2012

Crafar Farms for Judicial Review?

A recommendation to approve the sale of the Crafar Farms to the Shanghai Pengxin Group will lead to a Judicial Review of the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) approval process.

Crafar Farms Purchase Group spokesman Alan McDonald confirmed that the group of Iwi and farmers, has retained leading QC Alan Galbraith and legal heavyweights Bell Gully, to lead a legal challenge should the OIO recommend approving the Shanghai Pengxin deal.

“The legal approach seems to be the only avenue to bring some transparency to the application information and the process behind the approval,” says Alan McDonald. “Without legal action we will never know how the OIO reached their recommendation to approve the sale of the farms.

“The Overseas Investment Act does not permit consent to be granted for the acquisition of farm land by overseas persons with no relevant farming expertise. Shanghai Pengxin is a construction and property development company that has no expertise in dairy farming. The Chinese are passive investors relying on Landcorp to add the farming component.”

Bell Gully partner, David Cooper said a letter had been sent to the OIO last week advising them of the commitment to seek Judicial Review and asking for a copy of the Shanghai Pengxin application for consent or other relevant information.

“We need timely access to the relevant information held by the OIO to protect the opportunity for our clients to exercise their rights to seek judicial review of the recommendation made under the Overseas Investment Act. Our request was sent to the OIO on January 9 and we’ve heard nothing since,” says Mr Cooper.

NB: The Crafar Farms Purchase Group consists of 10 independent buyers, including the Tiroa E and Te Hape B Trusts (represented by Hardie Peni) and Sir Michael Fay, who all have current dairy farming interests in the Central North Island. The Group has come together as the Receiver insists on selling the farms in one package. Each farmer in the Group has been allocated the properties they have an interest in buying with no farmer seeking more than two farms.
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