A federal judge has said he will approve a bankruptcy sale of one of the largest fruit producers in Washington to the sole bidder.
Judge Frederick Corbett of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington “conditionally approved” the sale of Brewster Heights Packing and Orchards to Legendary Fruit Co., the only company to make an offer in the months-long proceedings.
“That offer will also perpetuate … a business that’s important for not just Central and Eastern Washington, but for the United States, and hopefully preserve many jobs and keep a valuable business going,” Corbett said during recorded proceedings on Sept. 23 in his Spokane courtroom. “So, I find that it is a fair and reasonable offer and should be approved.”
The price is $75 million in cash plus the assumption of a little more than $175 million in debt, Corbett and lawyers said.
Brewster Heights, owned by the sixth generation of the Gebbers farming family, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in early June, putting up for bid packing houses, 8,500 acres of orchards and marketing rights to several apple varieties.
Legendary Fruit, a North Central Washington fruit company owned by investment firm International Farming Corp., made a starting-point bid of $231 million under the name of Heritage Orchard Alliance. Other companies publicly discussed making offers, but none did.
Brewster Heights was behind more than $200 million in secured debt with liens on most of its assets, said John Mitchell, the company’s attorney, in court.
Unsecured creditors — including Wilbur-Ellis, Nutrien Ag Solutions and Northwest Wholesale — were owed a total of $24 million, according to court records. They will receive between 9 and 11 percent of their debt, Mitchell said, “more than they would get in a liquidation if these assets were liquidated.” •
