Houston’s Farm thrives following significant loss

ONE of Australia’s biggest salad producers has been through a significant financial turnaround.

Recognition: Richard Hopkins from Houston’s Farm with the turnaround award it won recently. Picture: Sam Rosewarne

ONE of Australia’s biggest salad producers has been through a significant financial turnaround.

Houston’s Farm recorded a significant loss in 2016 and ongoing losses to the end of the 2016-2017 financial year but is now set to open a $5.8 million development.

The operation has bounced back and is ready to expand to meet growing demand for baby leaf lettuce.

The financial losses caused a company restructure, mainly for top management.

New chief executive Richard Hopkins, with a team that included founding family member Anthony Houston and interim chief executive Mike Wallas, steered the company from near collapse in October 2016 to one of its strongest profits in the financial year 2017-2018.

“The profit in financial year 2018 has set us up for further growth and investment,” Mr Hopkins said.

Houston’s Farm no longer grows crops at its Cambridge headquarters site. Instead it is expanding operations on 40ha at Forcett, near Sorell.

“This will allow us to grow produce to meet a growing market.”

This year the company is aiming to grow 3 million kilograms of baby leaf lettuce and procure another 2 million kilos from interstate growers.

“That’s the forecast and we are on track for our biggest year in revenue, produce and profit,” Mr Hopkins said.

Mr Hopkins has just returned from Tasmania’s trade mission through Asia, meeting with produce importer Win-Chain and online marketplace Alibaba.

“We now have our branded salads on shop shelves in Hong Kong,” Mr Hopkins said.

He said the potential opening in the valuable Chinese market was largely thanks to a memorandum of understanding the State Government signed with Win-Chain.

Houston’s Farm aims to secure contracts with Win-Chain and Alibaba that Mr Hopkins said would bring millions of dollars to the company and allow it to hire more staff.

“If we can get these contracts it will increase jobs in the area significantly,” he said.

The change of financial fortunes landed Houston’s Farm the Turnaround Management Association’s turnaround of the year award for medium-sized businesses.

“The award is great recognition for the effort of the whole team. The success of the turnaround allowed us to complete the Forcett project,” Mr Hopkins said.