Less than two weeks after it was announced Australia's largest avocado farm would be sold to a foreign buyer, the country's top cherry exporter has been put up for sale. 

Reid Fruits managing director Tim Reid told newspaper The Mercury the company, which grows cherries on 136 hectares of land in Tasmania and accounts for a fifth of Australia's exports of the fruit, was seeking a buyer via expressions of interest.

Reid told the publication he expected the sale to be finalized in late October or November. 

Tim Reid with former Australian PM Tony Abbott and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"If we don’t get a reasonable bid for the company, we will keep it going because the market growth opportunity for the entire industry is good," the executive was quoted as saying.

After that announcement, Reid told Fresh Fruit Portal the main reason behind the decision was that he and his wife Debra felt it was time to retire.

"That’s the main reason for selling, and there’s such a growth opportunity now for our business that really needs someone to come in with new energy to take the business to the next level," Reid said.

The executive didn't want to disclose a ballpark figure of the price he had in mind, and that Ernst & Young was undertaking the process.

"They will run a process around calling for expressions of interest nationally here in Australia and internationally, and from that we’ll decide whether or not it’s appropriate," he said.

"From the point of view of projections for the company over the foreseeable future are quite strong. We’ve got an expansion project in place – we see a bright future for the industry, particularly from a Tasmanian point of view.

"We’ve developed a strong brand image, particularly in the Asian region, so we think there’s a lot of growth opportunity for our business now."

With a legacy business that has been around since 1856, we asked Reid whether it would be sad to hand over the family company.

"Our company originally had the interest almost solely in the production of apples, and in 2006 we had to make a very emotional decision I guess around closing our apple operation in Tasmania and moving over to primarily growing cherries instead of apples," he replied.

"I guess that was when the most emotion was involved in the whole divestment part of our business – nowadays we’re dealing with a cherry operation that’s really been invented by this generation of the family, and it’s a relatively new business being only less than 20 years since we started on cherries. 

"It’s been purely an investment - we’ve kept the emotion out of that."

But is there any chance he'll hold on to a minority share to keep one foot in the door?

"That’s all up for negotiation depending on the offers that come forward, but personally I would rather divest and move on," he said.

"I don’t know whether I’d like to be a minority shareholder in the business and not have total control of what’s happening; that’s not my style, so I think I’d rather see us divest completely," he said.

He said a key concern in negotiations will be making sure staff are looked after in the process.

"We've got a terrific management team and some very loyal and very experienced people working with the company," he said.

Cherry market outlook

While the largest share of Australia's cherry crop is grown on the mainland, Tasmania enjoys a privileged position in export markets due to the state's fruit fly-free status.

While difficult weather conditions led to a reduced export crop this year, the future looks bright for companies like Reid Fruits that occupy a niche harvest period that allows them to capitalize on counterseasonal demand in Asia, particularly in the lead up to Chinese New Year celebrations.

While Chilean cherries dominate markets during this time, Australia has an advantage due to its proximity and reputation, with fruit generally selling at a premium to the South American competition. 

With a well-established brand, Reid Fruits has often been the victim of counterfeit fruit branding on the Chinese market - such is the demand for its product. 

The group has undertaken multi-million dollar investments in its fields and facilities over the course of recent years, including the implementation of a retractable greenhouse on a new, higher-elevation orchard.

Reid has described the technology as the "Rolls-Royce" of production systems. 

www.freshfruitportal.com