AFTER more than 100 years in operation, the company which owns Aussie tomato sauce brand Rosella has gone into receivership

Food manufacturer Gourmet Food Holdings and Waterwheel was placed into receivership following the appointment of voluntary administrators on Friday.

The group’s interests include sauce, spice and chutney manufacturer Rosella, based at Seven Hills, NSW; Auckland-based organic soups and pre-made meals maker Pitango; and crispbreads and cracker maker Waterwheel, based at Dandenong, Victoria.

Receivers Ferrier Hodgson said they will be undertaking an “urgent assessment” of the financial position of the group.

“We will be engaging in discussions with key stakeholders including employees, customers and suppliers to determine whether operations can be continued,” said partner Steve Sherman.

Former employee Ben O’Neill who worked at the Rosella factory as a cook for four months until three weeks ago, said his former colleagues were ”not very happy”.

”They just said there’s no more work. They’ve finished work today,” Mr O’Neill said.

“I’m sad to see it go because it’s an Australian company.”

An expressions-of-interest campaign will be launched in the next few days to find potential buyers for the group or its individual businesses.

The group employs about 275 people, who’ve been warned that their jobs could be affected by some restructuring of the companies.

Ferrier Hodgson has released a statement to employees, saying they are unable to determine whether employee entitlements will be paid in full due to the uncertainty surrounding the realisable value of floating charge assets and the prospects of securing a sale of the business.

“The receivers cannot guarantee continued employment, however, it is the receivers’ intention to explore all options to ensure that your employment can be preserved,” Ferrier Hodgson said in a statement to employees.

“We will endeavour to provide you with a further update as soon as possible.

“At this stage, we are unable to determine whether employee entitlements will be paid in full due to uncertainty surrounding the realisable value of floating charge assets and the prospects of securing a sale of the business.”