NT irrigated fodder farm to sell to local family, reportedly for $7 million

A Northern Territory family is buying a Central Australian irrigated fodder farm reportedly for about $7 million. 

The Territory Grape Farm, a 2,100-hectare property near Ti Tree, 180 kilometres north of Alice Springs, is being sold to the Haigh family.

Despite its name, the farm no longer grows grapes.

The Territory Grape Farm’s sister property, Oolloo Farm, was sold to the Caason Group in June for $6.1 million by the same owner, Roy Chisolm.

The farm comes with a 2,000-megalitre water licence, two centre pivots covering 60 hectares, about 300 lemon trees and a small almond trial, and is one in only  a handful of properties producing irrigated hay in Central Australia.

The Haigh family, which owns a bore drilling business, declined to confirm the sale price, but the NT News has reported a price of about $7 million.

Farm to continue with hay production

Danyelle Haigh told ABC Rural she believed the property had “a lot of potential”.

“The previous owners have had hay growing there quite successfully for the past four years,” she said.

“There’s a huge need for hay, with the conditions in the Territory, so we will definitely be growing hay.”

Ms Haigh said the family would also continue to look after the lemon trees and almond trial plot on the property.

“They are doing really well — they are quite big and beautiful lemons, so that is definitely [one] we’re going to continue with and look after,” she said.

The Haigh family spends about 10 months of the year on the road, drilling bores on cattle stations across northern Australia.

Ms Haigh said her family was looking forward to settling in one place.

“It’s just in the perfect spot for us, with our kids going to Alice Springs School of the Air,” she said.

“A lot of our work is based in the Barkly and the Katherine area, so it has made it quite central for us now.”

Ms Haigh said the family also intended to set up a caravan park and accommodation on the property.