Provisional liquidator named for major carrot producer as company unable to meet debts
A provisional liquidator has been appointed to Hughes Agriculture & Farming Ltd (Co Kilkenny) to realise €2.8m of carrots, parsnips and daffodil bulbs before the season ends amid insolvency and unpaid debts.
A High Court order by Judge Oisín Quinn appointed a provisional liquidator to Hughes Agriculture & Farming Limited of Co Kilkenny after the business was judged insolvent and indebted to Revenue and other creditors.
The company is reported to supply about 12% of Ireland’s €66 million carrot market and also produces parsnips and daffodil bulbs. Colin Gaynor of Resolute Advisory was proposed by the company to act as provisional liquidator with responsibility to realise perishable farm assets.
The provisional liquidator’s remit focuses on harvesting and selling crops valued at €2.8 million — mainly carrots, plus parsnips and daffodils — to secure returns for creditors while seasonal windows remain open.
Founder and sole director Julian Hughes stated there was an acute cash‑flow crisis, with €4,426 in the trading bank account, and that continuing to trade was not possible or appropriate. He cited wage and input‑cost inflation and three years of persistent rain affecting growing conditions.
Hughes said forecast annual sales had fallen by €600,000 this year and the company expects a net loss of €941,000. Outstanding liabilities are roughly €1.4 million to trade creditors and €689,000 to Revenue (PAYE, PRSI and warehoused debt).
Hughes and Donum Loza Limited (a 50% shareholder) advanced loans totalling €1.5 million over three years and have exhausted options for further debt finance, the affidavit says.
Timing is critical: the carrot season typically concludes around May 1, after which crop value can decline. Company estimates indicate harvesting 65 acres of carrots could generate about €1.76 million, with c.€1 million net; selling the carrots in the ground to another grower might raise about €500,000.
The business also holds 10 acres of parsnips valued at €150,000 packaged or €100,000 in the ground, and 75 acres of daffodil bulbs valued between €900,000 and €1,000,000 that must be sold by end‑March to avoid contamination risks on rented land.
All crops are planted on rented holdings; landowners are expected to press for harvesting rather than abandonment. A winding‑up petition is scheduled in two weeks. The company was incorporated in 2012 and is based at Haggard, Kells, Co Kilkenny.