Agribusiness

The Australian suitor for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter Factory, dairy co-operative Murray Goulburn, has surrendered to Canadian rival Saputo.

Canadian dairy giant Saputo has secured majority control of takeover target Warrnambool Cheese and Butter Factory.

CO2 Group has sacked long-serving chief executive Andrew Grant as it pushes on with its bid to recast the business as an environmental services and aquaculture player.

Gage Roads Brewing Company founder Peter Nolin has been appointed CEO of the WA Farmers Federation.

Bega Cheese will sell its 18.8 per stake in Warrnambool Cheese and Butter to Canadian dairy giant Saputo, putting Saputo in prime position to win the takeover battle for WCB.

The parties battling for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter are still a long way off from gaining control of the target, with the offer of one suitor set to expire on Friday evening, and the other suitor trapped in the regulatory process.

Ian Trahar's CO2 Group has taken another step towards becoming one of the nation's largest aquaculture players, putting the finishing touches its $11.2 million takeover of Queensland prawn growing

Takeover target Warrnambool Cheese and Butter Factory says suitor Murray Goulburn is unlikely to overcome hurdles obstructing its bid.

TFS Corporation has lined up an $8.5 million purchase of a cattle station in the Northern Territory for the further establishment of Indian sandalwood plantations.

Western Australian farmers have delivered their biggest harvest in history, with the total haul today surpassing the 15.06 million tonne record set in 2011-12.

Bega Cheese has pulled out of the three-way battle for control of Warrnambool Cheese and Butter.

Perth businessman Allen Caratti has requested more time to arrange his affairs ahead of a proposed deal which would see him take effective control of a forestry investment trust previously controlled by Elders.

CBH Group chief executive Andrew Crane has been appointed a member of Australia's B20 Leadership Group, a private sector consortium that produces policy recommendations for international finance leaders for the annual G20 Leaders Summit in Brisbane next year.

Western Australian farmers are increasingly confident about their outlook and may enjoy their best profits in a decade after the scale of the state's grain harvest was upgraded to near record levels.

The state government has formalised plans for Chinese group Shanghai Zhongfu to develop thousands of hectares of irrigated land in the Kimberley, more than a year after naming the company as its preferred proponent for the land.

Outgoing GrainCorp chief executive Alison Watkins is heading to beverages supplier Coca-Cola Amatil (CCA) as group managing director.

Treasurer Joe Hockey's blocking of a $3.4 billion foreign takeover of grains handler and marketer GrainCorp will have implications for the whole agricultural industry, the company says.

Murray Goulburn has lifted its offer for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter to $533 million to stay in the three way race for the historic dairy company.

Bega Cheese is considering whether it will join legal efforts to stall Canadian firm Saputo's takeover offer for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter.

Elders chief executive Malcolm Jackman says he is leaving the rural services provider in good shape - but not great shape.

Canadian dairy giant Saputo will lift its takeover offer for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter to $9.20 per WCB share if it attains a stake in Warrnambool of more than 50 per cent.

Shares in Warrnambool Cheese and Butter are up 19 cents as they resume trading after the company recommended the latest, higher takeover offer from Canadian dairy giant Saputo.

Agribusiness Elders has reported an annual loss of $505 million due to charges related to restructuring the company, and challenging and seasonal market conditions.

Sandalwood producer TFS Corporation has been hit with a second strike but has survived a board spill after more than a quarter of its shareholders voted against adopting the company's remuneration report for the second consecutive year.

Canadian dairy giant Saputo is set to raise its takeover offer for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter after rival bidders trumped its first offer.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott could intervene to prevent the foreign takeover of Australia's largest agribusiness despite support for the bid by his Liberal colleagues.

Bega Cheese has increased its takeover offer for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter, but it doesn't match the $505 million offered by rival Murray Goulburn.

Australia's largest grain handler GrainCorp blames takeover costs and a smaller crop for a 31 per cent slump in its full year profit - and warns of tougher conditions ahead.

The three-way bidding war for Warrnambool Cheese and Butter has escalated, with Murray Goulburn now offering $505 million to trump Canadian bidder Saputo.

Rural services company Elders expects to report a loss of more than $500 million for its recently concluded fiscal year.

The liquidators of timber plantation assets formerly owned by collapsed managed investment scheme Great Southern may have found a buyer for the assets, with an investment trust managed by Sydney-based company New Forests agreeing to purchase the plantations.

Shares in NSW cheese maker Bega have surged to a record high after the world's biggest diary exporter Fonterra bought a six per cent stake in it.