Allied Farmers names new head for rural division

Allied Farmers, which is outsourcing management of its property and loan assets, has named Fonterra executive Steve Morrison as the chief executive of its rural division.

The appointment comes ahead of the departure of current company chief executive Rob Alloway, who leaves at the end of June when his contract expires.

Meanwhile, Allied Farmers said its general counsel and company secretary Ross O’Neill had resigned his full time position but will stay on as a part time consultant.

Mr O’Neill joined the company in April 2010. His resignation follows the departure of chief financial officer Gary Wong, who left the company last Friday.

Earlier this week Allied Farmers said that with the impending departure of Mr Alloway, the company had restructured its executive team, with two distinct divisions -- rural and investments -- to have their own leadership.

Mr Alloway was heavily involved in Allied Farmers purchase of finance company Hanover's loan book in December 2009. In April this year he resigned as managing director, while speaking out against a fellow director in a dispute over investment banking fees relating to the Hanover deal.



A full time chief executive was no longer thought to be required to manage the Hanover and United property loans, with a third party to be appointed to manage those assets.

Restructuring specialist Graham McKenzie, a former partner at law firm Bell Gully, has been brought in as part of that arrangement.

Today the company said its new appointment to head Allied Farmers Rural, Mr Morrison, had held various management roles in the dairy industry in the past 20 years.

He had been responsible for a significant portion of Fonterra's manufacturing operations for a number of years as central regional general manager, based in Hawera.

Most recently Mr Morrison was manufacturing value add manager for New Zealand operations 
for Fonterra.

He had developed Tairoa Lodge near Hawera and owned a sheep and beef property near Stratford.

Allied's shares last traded at 1c. When Hanover investors swapped their debentures back in December 2009, the share price was just over 20c.