Receiver appointed to Global Meat Exports’ bank accounts to sort out Cedar Meats finances

Melbourne sheep, veal and goat meat processor Cedar Meats is back in the spotlight again. See the behind-the-scenes power play.

A stoush has erupted over control of Cedar Meats, just eight months after the company was taken over by Global Meat Exports. Picture: ANDREW HENSHAW

A big battle has emerged for control of Brooklyn meat processor Cedar Meats, just eight months after a deal was struck for the company to be taken over by Global Meat Exports.

Documents lodged with the Australian Securities and Investment Commission show a Seychelles company, Jasper Nominees Limited, has appointed receiver Laurie Fitzgerald, of William Buck, to take control of Global Meat Exports’ bank accounts.

Jasper Nominees is the first mortgagee which bankrolled the GME purchase of Cedar Meats in October last year.

The Weekly Times understands the unusual move to take control of the bank accounts stems from GME’s failure to complete payment to the Lebanese family which owned Cedar Meats.

Cedar Meats was established in 1984 by six Kairouz brothers as a butcher shop in Northcote.

The Kairouz family built it into an integrated processing and export business in Melbourne’s west, with a turnover of more than $200 million a year exporting meat to countries such as the US, China and Malaysia.

The owners began negotiating in 2018 to sell the sheep, goat and veal meat processing firm to GME to allow some family members to exit the business while others stayed.

But it took until last October to strike a deal which would allow prominent family members Pierre Kairouz and his nephew Tony Kairouz to continue playing an active part in the business’ operations.

Tony Kairouz said GME bought the business, but the family still owned all the properties on which Cedar Meats operated its abattoir in Brooklyn and boning rooms in nearby West Footscray.

Mr Kairouz said GME had not made full payment for the business and under contractual agreements, if those were not met, the business would revert back to the family.

“The only problems we’ve experienced with Global Meat Exports is that they have acquired the business but haven’t completely executed all their obligations under the acquisition.

“We are working with the first mortgagee (Jasper Nominees) complete the (sale deal) obligations or the business reverts back to a family operation.”

Mr Kairouz said the move to control the bank accounts was complex.

“What the dispute here is that GME has certain priorities for what payments should be made and Cedar Meats and the family have certain priorities,” he said.

“What we are doing here is not allowing either party to use their discretion but rather an independent person can say: this is a business-related expense and this will be paid.

“It’s got nothing to do with the performance of the business.

The business will continue and prosper.”

Global Meat Exports has four main shareholder companies but also included well-known barrister Robert Richter QC and his colleague Remy van de Wiel QC.

Two of the major shareholders are BodyCorp Repairers Pty Ltd, owned by Calabrian-born Antonio Murdaca, of Airport West, and another Murdaca family company, Repose Nominees.

BodyCorp Repairers is currently being wound up and a hearing is scheduled this Thursday in the Supreme Court of Victoria.

The other two major shareholders of GME are Simply Brilliant Pty Ltd, the family trust company of the D’Anna family of Essendon, and Stama Consulting, owned by Melelaos Stamatopoulos.

Pierre Kairouz and former AustAgri Group director Andrew Chan, remain the only directors of GME.

Mr Fitzgerald did not respond to The Weekly Times.