Farmers urge Christmas trees group to detail difficulties

The Irish Farmers' Association has called on the Westmeath-based Christmas tree company, European Forestry Growers, to immediately issue a statement of affairs to allow farmers assess the extent of the company's financial difficulties.

The company's directors - Mr Leonard Mohan and Mr Conor Mohan - have proposed that the company be put into voluntary liquidation and have called a creditors meeting for next Tuesday to appoint a liquidator. More than 500 farmers and investors are understood to have had contracts with the company to grow Christmas trees. Some of them claim to be owed up to £30,000 by the company.

IFA farm forestry section chairman, Mr Padraic Divilly, said hundreds of farmers now face great uncertainty in respect of their investment. Yesterday he said the IFA was "greatly concerned that many farmers may suffer huge losses" and had advised farmers to exercise extreme caution when signing contracts with forestry companies. The farmers' organisation has called a meeting of farmers owed money by European Forestry Growers before the creditors meeting. The IFA meeting will be held at Buswell's Hotel, Molesworth Street, Dublin 2 at 8.30 a.m. The European Forestry Growers creditors meeting is due to be held at 9.30 a.m. at the nearby Earl of Kildare Hotel.

The current financial position of the company is not known. It has not filed annual returns at the Companies Registration Office since April 1994. At that time, it reported losses of £131,951, with fixed assets of £27,203 and long-term finance liabilities of £171,545.

Last month, a Co Mayo farmer secured a court judgment against European Forestry Growers for £2,760 and was also awarded costs of £295.

European Forestry Growers began trading in 1990, entering into contracts with farmers and land-owners to plant its Christmas trees. After three to five years, the company undertook to buy the mature trees and to export them to Britain and Germany but farmers have run into difficulties in enforcing these contracts. A number of investors have contacted The Irish Times with complaints about the company and expressing difficulties in securing payment for their trees. They also stated that they were having difficulties making contact with the directors.

The company's offices at Athlone are no longer attended.