Zacky Farms properties head to auction; 'OK' bidder emerges

29 Apr

Zacky Farms properties head to auction; ‘OK’ bidder emerges

OK Produce submitted a $1.9 million bid for the former Zacky Farms office south of Downtown Fresno. Image via Google Earth

published on April 29, 2019 - 11:10 AM
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Correction: A previous version of this story implied that OK Produce would relocate its offices to a former Zacky Farms property currently involved in bankruptcy auction proceedings. OK Produce plans to keep its recently renovated downtown offices and use that new land for which it submitted the high bid for parking its fleet of trucks.

All has been quiet since Zacky Farms declared bankruptcy back in November. But now the auction gavel is about to swing and we will find out who ends up with the carcass of this Fresno-area poultry producer.

It looks like OK Produce Co. put in the top bid to buy land and a 12,000 square-foot building located at 2020 S East Ave., through the bankruptcy proceedings. Zacky Farms accepted the $1.9 million bid, but it wont be final until all the auction results are in.

Zacky commenced its bankruptcy case by filing a voluntary petition under Chapter 11 on Nov. 13, 2018. As a result, the debtor will sell 15 Central California properties through the bankruptcy auction process scheduled for May 7, and sale announcements May 13.

Court filings reveal the Zacky office near Van ness Avenue and Golden State Boulevard is the only asset that has a so-called “stalking horse” buyer in the wings, with ongoing discussions with numerous other prospective buyers for other assets. Officials with Great Rock Capital, Zacky’s principal debt holder, believe a number of these prospective buyers are serious buyers who are willing and able to submit qualified bids.

Among the assets up for grabs are several large poultry ranches in Kings County including a 400-acre facility in Corcoran and smaller ranches near Lemoore. Local poultry producers are expected to be in contention for these properties.

The 164,000 square-foot processing facility at 2950 E California Ave. is the largest asset of the bunch, sitting on 11.5 acres near the former Zacky office. It’s unlikely another poultry producer would purchase the facility for its current use as a slaughtering plant, but some other industrial user may be interested.

In announcing the closure of the fourth generation business last fall, CEO Lillian Zacky said: “After four generations and an enormous effort to keep the company in sync with the fast pace of changing times, we no longer are able to keep up with business as usual. We have put our best foot forward, but as we struggled in the current state of the industry conditions, it has been impossible for us to continue profitably.”