Select Harvests

Select Harvests is an Australian agricultural and food-processing company focused primarily on almonds. It is described as Australia's largest almond grower and processor and as one of the world's largest almond growers. The company owns and manages orchards, harvests and initially processes the crop, and markets almonds and value-added almond foods in Australia and international markets. The business operates through two closely connected activities. Its almond division manages agricultural assets in Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia, including orchards, irrigation infrastructure and harvesting operations. Its food division processes and markets inshell almonds, almond kernels and prepared almond products. The combination gives Select Harvests control across much of the supply chain, from orchard production through hulling, shelling, sorting, packing, storage and distribution. Its international marketing has been conducted under the Allinga Farms brand, while Renshaw has also remained part of the company's brand portfolio. Select Harvests was founded in 1978, while its listed predecessors date from 1983. The company was previously known as Defender Limited and Defender Australia Limited. Its development took place during the expansion of Australia's modern almond industry. Although early Australian almond plantations were established on the Adelaide Plains and around Willunga, production increasingly moved during the 1960s and 1970s toward irrigated districts along the Murray River. The Riverland, Sunraysia and Riverina regions offered more suitable land, reliable irrigation access and favorable growing conditions, and became the principal areas in which Select Harvests developed its orchard base. The company expanded its agricultural footprint as Australia's almond sector grew rapidly. Between 1999 and 2007, total Australian planted almond acreage increased approximately fivefold. Select Harvests owned about 9,000 acres and leased a further 4,500 acres in 2007. By 2025, its planted area was reported at 22,403 acres across three growing regions. Its orchards include properties around Robinvale in northern Victoria, the Riverina and Hillston areas of New South Wales, and Paringa, Loxton and Renmark in South Australia. In 2014, it acquired Amaroo near Renmark, described at the time as Australia's largest independent almond orchard. Processing is centered on the Carina West facility at Wemen, Victoria, near the Murray River and approximately 400 kilometers northwest of Melbourne. Commissioned in 2008 at a cost of A$40 million, the 100-acre site has hulling and shelling capacity of up to 50,000 metric tonnes over twelve months, together with storage, sorting, packing, warehousing and fumigation infrastructure. Products are made under food-safety and market-access systems including Australian quarantine requirements, hazard-analysis procedures, SQF2000, halal and kosher certifications. Select Harvests has also invested in using orchard and almond-processing waste as an energy source. A biomass co-generation project at Carina West received a A$1.5 million grant in 2015. The system uses almond and orchard residues to produce heat and electricity, with surplus power capable of being supplied to the grid. The company's 2023 sustainability reporting stated that 27,685 tonnes of biomass were used in the plant and that it generated 17.8 gigawatt-hours of renewable electricity. The company has pursued export growth in India and China while maintaining established routes into wider Asian, European and Middle Eastern markets. In 2021, it sold the Lucky and Sunsol brands to New Zealand-based Prolife Foods, while retaining Allinga Farms and Renshaw. Select Harvests therefore combines large-scale Australian horticulture with processing, export distribution and consumer-facing almond brands.

Select Harvests was established in Australia in 1978, with listed predecessors existing from 1983. Before adopting its current identity, the business operated under the names Defender Limited and Defender Australia Limited. Its corporate development coincided with the relocation and industrialization of Australian almond cultivation. Almond growing in Australia began in the nineteenth century on the Adelaide Plains, where the climate, rainfall and fertile soils supported commercial plantations. Production later spread toward southern Adelaide, especially Willunga. Urban expansion eventually reduced the importance of these locations, and from the 1960s and 1970s the industry shifted eastward toward irrigated land along the Murray River. The Riverland, Sunraysia and Riverina districts became the principal production centers because they offered lower-cost land, water for irrigation and conditions better suited to large-scale orchard management. These regions form the geographical foundation of Select Harvests' agricultural operations. Australian almond acreage expanded sharply in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. National planted area increased from approximately 9,000 acres in 1999 to about 62,000 acres in 2007. Select Harvests participated in this expansion through a combination of owned and leased orchards. In 2007 it reportedly owned around 9,000 acres and leased another 4,500 acres. Its later orchard network extended across northern Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia. Key locations include Robinvale, the Riverina, Hillston, Griffith, Paringa, Loxton and Renmark. In 2014, the acquisition of the Amaroo property near Renmark strengthened the company's South Australian presence; the property was then described as the country's largest independent almond orchard. The company also attempted to broaden its growing base into Western Australia. In 2008, it secured approximately 4,300 acres on the Dandaragan Plateau. The project involved immature orchards, water rights and irrigation infrastructure, but Select Harvests decided in early 2013 to exit the development. In December 2015, it announced the sale of the Western Australian orchards and land for A$9.5 million to an unnamed private Australian business. The transaction followed almost A$60 million in write-downs associated with the project. Processing became a central part of the company's vertically integrated model. Select Harvests commissioned the Carina West facility at Wemen in Victoria in 2008. The 100-acre plant was built at a reported cost of A$40 million and provided hulling and shelling capacity of 50,000 metric tonnes over a twelve-month period. It also incorporated storage, sorting, packing, warehousing and fumigation functions. This infrastructure enabled the company to handle almonds from its orchards and prepare products for domestic and international customers. Production systems addressed Australian quarantine and inspection requirements as well as hazard-analysis, SQF2000, halal and kosher standards. Sustainability-related infrastructure was added through a biomass co-generation project. In 2015, Select Harvests received a A$1.5 million grant toward a plant using almond and orchard waste to generate heat and electricity. Initial projections anticipated the use of approximately 30,000 metric tonnes of waste and annual carbon-dioxide reductions exceeding 23,500 tonnes. The company's 2023 sustainability reporting recorded 27,685 tonnes of biomass consumed and 17.8 gigawatt-hours of renewable electricity generated, with some electricity returned to the grid. Alongside agricultural and processing growth, Select Harvests developed an international marketing business. It has exported almonds to India and China and served customers across Asia, Europe and the Middle East. The Allinga Farms brand has been used for global marketing, and Renshaw remains within the portfolio. In 2021, Select Harvests sold Lucky and Sunsol to Prolife Foods of New Zealand, simplifying its branded portfolio while retaining Allinga Farms and Renshaw. By 2025, the business reported a total planted area of 22,403 acres across three growing regions and continued to operate as an integrated almond grower, processor and marketer.

• 2025

  Planted area reaches 22,403 acres

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  Reported total planted area stood at 22,403 acres across three growing regions.

• 2021

  Lucky and Sunsol brands divested

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  The Lucky and Sunsol brands were sold to Prolife Foods, while Allinga Farms and Renshaw were retained.

• 2015

  Biomass co-generation project supported by grant

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  A A$1.5 million grant supported construction of a biomass energy and almond production project at Carina West.

• 2015

  Western Australian assets sold

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  Select Harvests announced the sale of its Western Australian orchards and land for A$9.5 million after major project write-downs.

• 2014

  Amaroo orchard acquired

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  The company purchased the Amaroo almond property near Renmark in South Australia.

• 2013

  Decision to exit Dandaragan project

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  Select Harvests decided to leave its Western Australian almond development and offered the related orchards, water rights and irrigation assets for sale.

• 2008

  Carina West facility commissioned

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  Select Harvests commissioned its major almond hulling and shelling facility at Wemen, Victoria.

• 2008

  Western Australian almond project expanded

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  The company secured approximately 4,300 acres on the Dandaragan Plateau in Western Australia.

• 1983

  Listed predecessors established

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  The company's listed predecessors date from 1983.

• 1978

  Business founded

  [1]Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org

  Select Harvests was founded in Australia.

An integrated Australian almond producer and food processor with large-scale irrigated orchards, domestic and export distribution, and branded almond products.

• Agricultural produce

  Almonds

  Select Harvests grows almonds in managed orchards across Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia. Its agricultural operations cover orchard management, irrigation, harvesting and the initial handling of the crop. Almonds are supplied in bulk and processed into products for Australian and international markets.

• Food ingredient

  Inshell almonds

  Inshell almonds are among the company's processed offerings. They are handled through Select Harvests' post-harvest infrastructure, including sorting, packing, storage and fumigation, and are marketed through domestic and export channels.

• Food ingredient

  Almond kernels

  Almond kernels are produced through hulling and shelling operations at the Carina West facility. The kernels serve both consumer-food and ingredient markets and are distributed in Australia and overseas.

• Branded almond products

  Allinga Farms

  Allinga Farms is Select Harvests' international-facing almond brand. It is used to market almonds and almond products globally, including through established routes into Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

• Branded food products

  Renshaw

  Renshaw is a retained Select Harvests brand associated with the company's value-added almond and food-product portfolio.

• 2021

  Sale of Lucky and Sunsol brandsM&A

  Background

  Select Harvests reviewed its branded food portfolio while continuing to operate its almond-growing, processing and export businesses.

  Action taken

  The company sold Lucky and Sunsol to Prolife Foods of New Zealand.

  Aftermath

  Select Harvests retained the Allinga Farms and Renshaw brands.

  Source

• 2015

  Investment in biomass co-generationOther

  Background

  Almond processing and orchard operations generate shells and other organic residues that can be used as fuel.

  Action taken

  Select Harvests pursued a biomass boiler and steam-turbine system at Carina West, supported by a A$1.5 million grant.

  Aftermath

  By 2023, the facility was reported to have used 27,685 tonnes of biomass and generated 17.8 GWh of renewable electricity.

  Government grant. A$1.5 million (2015)

  Source

• 2013

  Exit from the Dandaragan almond projectStrategy

  Background

  Select Harvests had developed immature almond orchards and related water and irrigation assets on Western Australia's Dandaragan Plateau.

  Action taken

  The company decided to leave the project and place the orchards, land, water rights and infrastructure on the market.

  Aftermath

  The assets were later sold in 2015 after substantial write-downs associated with the project.

  Source

1. 1Select Harvestsen.wikipedia.org