Prominent Gippsland vegie farm forced to shut down
A leading vegie grower in Victoria and Queensland has collapsed into administration, leaving its 182 workers locked out following lease termination disputes.
A fourth-generation family farming enterprise, spanning properties in both Queensland and Victoria’s Gippsland region, has been forcibly shut down leaving more than 180 jobs in limbo.
Prominent vegie grower Dicky Bill Australia, one of the country’s leading growers, harvesters and packers of baby leaf salads and herbs, has been placed into voluntary administration.
Founded in Queensland’s Bundaberg region by the McLeod family in 1996, Dicky Bill was leasing two farms: a 283ha irrigated property near Maffra in East Gippsland known as Mills Lane, and the 162ha Drinan Farms, west of Bundaberg.
Both properties are owned by Melbourne-based agricultural investor and asset manager Warakirri Asset Management, via its Warakirri Diversified Agriculture Fund.
Dicky Bill used the Maffra farm for its summer production and Drinan Farms for winter crops, with both properties home to processing and washroom facilities, capable of triple washing and packaging more than 40 tonnes of loose leaf salads per week.
On November 26, creditors of Dicky Bill commenced legal proceedings and Dicky Bill advised Warakirri of its intent to place the business into administration, Warakirri said in a statement.
“In response, and after careful consideration, Warakirri elected to lawfully terminate these leases effective 26th November, 2025, and take possession of the properties,” a spokesman said.
“Dicky Bill has failed to meet a range of key obligations in their lease agreements with the fund. Warakirri, as the fund’s manager and trustee, had been working closely with Dicky Bill for over 24 months, but during this time Dicky Bill has been unable to remedy their situation or propose an acceptable restructure option.”
In a statement shared on its Facebook page, Dicky Bill Australia said cyclonic weather in Queensland plus flooding in Victoria and “a sequence of events outside the business’s control” had placed significant pressure on its operations.
“This is our family business. For months we worked side-by-side with professional advisers to put forward a plan that everyone could live with. We had the full support of our secured creditor,” Dicky Bill Australia director Ryan McLeod said.
“Warakirri told us they needed more time. Less than an hour later, they sent termination notices. By dawn the next day, our team were being turned away at the gates.
“Many of our people have mortgages, young families and deep ties to this community. They deserved better than to be told, without warning, that they no longer had a job.”
The winding up of Dicky Bill left its 182 employees locked out of the Queensland and Victorian farms, with their future uncertain.
“We are aware of a statement made by Dicky Bill in relation to these events, and we do not intend to publicly respond to the significant inaccuracies, particularly the extent of obligations outstanding to Warakirri and others,” a Warakirri spokesman said.
“The properties (Mills Lane and Drinan Farms) remain highly productive, quality horticulture assets we are committed to retaining.
“Warakirri is in the process of securing alternative tenant partners for the two assets so they can continue in their current use with minimum delay. In the interim, we have arrangements in place for the care and maintenance of the properties.
“We understand and regret that Dicky Bill’s situation will impact local communities, employees and other creditors, and we will do our best to finalise arrangements with new operating partners as soon as possible so full operations can resume on these farms.”
