LIC sells Deer Improvement as going concern

LIC is selling its deer business

LIC is selling its Deer Improvement subsidiary business, which includes a farm in Southland and more than 2000 animals.

The going concern sale, expected to be completed in early October, included the 390ha Balfour property, artificial breeding collection and laboratory facilities and the deer herd.

The buyers were South Canterbury sheep, beef and deer farmers Tom and Samantha Macfarlane and ''associated parties''. Daily operations would be managed by Mr and Mrs Macfarlane, a statement said.

LIC, a dairy farmer-owned co-operative, established Deer Improvement in 2003 as part of a multi-species strategy which identified deer as an industry which could benefit from the co-operative's experience and transferable knowledge in animal breeding. The business employed six staff in Balfour and Queenstown.

The sale allowed LIC to concentrate on its dairy business and reinvest funds back into areas that were more focused on adding value for dairy farmer shareholders, chief financial officer Linda Cooper said.

''LIC has generated significant genetic gain for the deer industry with Deer Improvement and the sale is a natural progression for the business.

''The new owners are great advocates for the deer industry and will take the business into the next phase of its growth,'' she said.

Last week, LIC announced net profit after-tax of $20.8 million for the year ending May 31, compared with the previous year's loss of $4 million.

Revenue was $203.5 million, down $7.2 million on the previous year.

Chairman Murray King said while the co-operative was very pleased to be ''back in the black'', it was still actively working to minimise its operating costs so it could weather future challenges that might arise.