Size: About 1,541ha (six farms)
Location: Atherton Tablelands, QLD
Sale method: Expressions of interest (individual properties or entire portfolio)
Price guide: N/A
A landmark collection of six farms on Queensland’s Atherton Tablelands has hit the market following more than 70 years of ownership and development by one of the region’s most prominent agricultural families.
The Howe Farming portfolio comprises approximately 1541ha across the Mareeba, Mutchilba and Arriga districts, encompassing established citrus, avocado, lychee, coffee and sugarcane operations, alongside significant agricultural development opportunities.
The properties are being offered through Elders via a flexible expressions of interest campaign, with buyers able to purchase individual holdings or the entire portfolio.
Elders Real Estate Chief Executive Officer Tom Russo said the offering represented a rare opportunity to secure a substantial foothold in one of Australia’s premier horticultural regions.
"Opportunities of this calibre and significance are exceptionally rare,” he said.
“The Howe family has spent generations assembling, developing and improving a portfolio that reflects the evolution of agriculture across the Atherton Tablelands.
"This is far more than a collection of farms.
“It is the culmination of more than 70 years of family stewardship, innovation and investment in one of Australia's most productive horticultural districts."
The largest holding, 825ha Masterton Park at Mutchilba, features 65.74 ha of young mandarin orchards, 419.5ha of centre-pivot irrigation country and substantial additional land.
Other properties include the 198.6-ha DiMarcos sugarcane farm at Arriga and the 97.22ha Cirrani's holding at Mareeba, which offers greenfield horticultural development potential.
Godfrey's at Arriga combines coffee and lychee production with processing and packing infrastructure, while Rasos at Mareeba contains 48.64ha of established coffee plantations.
The 35.95ha Falvos property features avocado orchards and further developable land.
Together, the coffee assets encompass more than 155,000 trees and established processing facilities.
Elders General Manager Farmland Agency and Agribusiness Investments Mark Barber said Australia's reliance on imported coffee presented opportunities for domestic producers.
"Australia is one of the world's most sophisticated coffee consuming markets, yet more that 95 per cent of the coffee consumed domestically is imported,” he said.
"The Atherton Tablelands has already established itself as Australia's premier coffee growing region.
“Assets of this scale provide investors with the opportunity to participate in a sector that remains relatively underdeveloped domestically but is supported by strong long-term consumption fundamentals."
The Howe Farming business was established by Tom and Yola Howe in the early 1950s, initially producing tobacco and vegetables before expanding into a diversified horticultural enterprise under their son, Dennis Howe OAM.
Following Dennis's death in 2025, the family undertook a strategic review and decided to sell selected holdings to concentrate on its remaining operations.
Howe Farming Chairman Ian Wilton said the sale marked an important chapter for the family business.
"The Howe family has been part of the fabric of the Tablelands for generations and these farms tell the story of that journey."
"As custodians of these assets, the family has always focused on long-term sustainability and regional development.
“We believe the portfolio now presents incoming investors with an exceptional platform for future growth."
Proceeds from the sale will be reinvested into developing the family's remaining agricultural assets.
Three of four farming properties making up the substantial Vater Family Aggregation in South Australia's Mid North have sold under the hammer for a combined $17.85 million.
The auction attracted 14 registered bidders, with the largest holding, Greenhills, fetching $12.2 million following an opening bid of $8 million.
The 1103.92ha aggregation, spanning the highly regarded Saddleworth and Manoora districts, was offered through Geoff and Daniel Schell of Ray White Rural South Australia.
Held by the Vater family and operated under long-term leasing arrangements with local farming families for the past decade, the portfolio comprised productive broadacre cropping and grazing country.
Speaking at the auction, Geoff Schell described the offering as a rare opportunity to secure quality farmland in a tightly held agricultural region.
“The offering of the properties today presents, we certainly believe, a great opportunity to invest in quality broadacre farming land in arguably one of the premier agricultural regions in South Australia,” he said.
“So, as an extension to an existing farming enterprise, an entry into farming or an investment in a family agribusiness in this quality region, the opportunity is a rare one.”
The standout result was Greenhills, a 564.36ha holding featuring about 396ha of arable land, 160ha of grazing country and a stone homestead dating to the 1930s.
The property also includes extensive farm shedding, a two-stand shearing shed, sheep yards and stock water infrastructure.
Mr Schell described Greenhills as “the jewel in the crown” of the aggregation.
The second holding, Crawfords, comprising 142.88ha at Saddleworth, sold for $2.95 million.
Hogbens/Ricks, a 157.41ha property at Manoora, achieved $2.7 million.
The fourth holding, Przibillas, comprising 239.27ha on the Barrier Highway at Manoora, was held over at auction and remains under negotiation.
The aggregation was offered individually, in combination or as a whole, providing opportunities for neighbouring farmers seeking expansion and larger agricultural enterprises.
Across the portfolio, infrastructure included two homesteads, two shearing sheds, livestock yards and extensive machinery and hay storage facilities.
Size: 2796ha
Location: Gemini Mountains, QLD
Sale method: Online auction on November 18
Price guide: N/A
A substantial Central Queensland cropping property boasting productive soils, extensive infrastructure and its own private airstrip has hit the market.
Spanning 2796ha across two adjoining titles, Jimbaroo Downs is located at 5240 Peak Downs Highway in the tightly held Gemini Mountains district.
The property is being marketed by Colliers Agribusiness agents Dan Quigley and Nicholas Warmington, in conjunction with Queensland Water Consultancy, through an online auction campaign.
About 1788ha, or 63 per cent of the holding, is considered arable, with the property supporting summer and winter cropping rotations of chickpeas, sorghum, mungbeans, wheat and barley.
Colliers Agribusiness Associate Director Dan Quigley said the property offered an attractive combination of scale, productivity and infrastructure.
“Jimbaroo Downs stands out for the combination of productive soils, scale, efficient paddock configuration and access to established grain infrastructure and a private airstrip,” he said.
“The deep self-mulching Vertosol clays are a major feature of the property, with their strong natural fertility and moisture-holding capacity providing an excellent platform for both summer and winter cropping.”
Improvements include three residences, a new 1152sq m machinery shed, a second 1080sq m machinery shed, a 360sq m woolshed and workshop, and additional storage facilities.
Water infrastructure comprises a 50ML underground irrigation licence, a substantial dam and rainwater and bore storage tanks providing about 1.16 million litres of additional capacity.
Mr Quigley said the property also offered opportunities to diversify agricultural operations.
“There is also a genuine opportunity for future feed bunk development and silage production, which could further integrate the property’s cropping and grazing capabilities,” he said.
“For northern cattle producers, that creates the potential to utilise Jimbaroo Downs as a strategically located weaner backgrounding asset, with the ability to produce fodder on-farm and utilise the property’s grazing country to prepare cattle for southern markets or feedlots.”
The holding also features approximately 807 tonnes of grain storage and an unregistered airstrip.
Colliers Agribusiness Senior Executive Nicholas Warmington said its position about 24km west of the Kilcummin grain terminal was another major advantage.
“Logistics are fundamental to the performance of a broadacre enterprise, and Jimbaroo Downs has a very strong position in that regard,” he said.
An established basalt quarry, with approval to extract between 5000 and 100,000 tonnes annually, provides potential additional income or operational savings.
Jimbaroo Downs will go under the hammer online at 1pm on November 18, without crops, plant or machinery.
Size: 139.2ha
Location: Bindera, NSW
Sale method: Private treaty
Price guide: $2.6 million
A productive cattle property boasting fertile river flats, quality farming infrastructure and 1.6km of Barrington River frontage has hit the market in the NSW Gloucester region for $2.6 million.
Known as Never Never Lodge, the 139.2ha holding at 689 Manchester Road, Bindera, combines grazing country with the appeal of a picturesque rural retreat, just 25 minutes from Gloucester.
The property features improved pastures, undulating grazing country and 12.2ha of fertile river flats, along with a 62ML water allocation licence.
The Agency Property Partner Amanda Robertson says the river flats are a particularly valuable asset.
“From a farming perspective, you've got just over 12ha of fertile river flats,” she said.
“It’s fabulous in the district to have good quality river flats to crop,” she says.
“You could grow oats, millet, rye, all sorts of stuff down there.”
The property is divided into four main paddocks and four river flat paddocks, with stock-proof fencing, covered cattle yards, a crush and calf cradle.
There's also a four-bay, 200sq m shed with workshop space, while the existing infrastructure can accommodate up to 100 head of cattle.
Robertson says the current owners, two families who purchased the property as a weekend retreat, have maintained the farm and its pastures.
Their Black Angus herd, valued at about $120,000, is also available by negotiation, along with farm equipment, valued at about $60,000.
Beyond its agricultural appeal, Never Never Lodge offers an idyllic escape for families and outdoor enthusiasts.
Robertson says the property's greatest attraction is its easily accessible river frontage.
“The jewel in the crown is the river,” she says.
“You know, so you can, you can fish it, you can swim it, you can kayak it.”
Camping facilities, swimming holes and access to walking trails towards Copeland Tops add to its recreational appeal.
Accommodation includes a three-bedroom cottage with a large covered entertaining deck and a former dairy converted into a casual sleep-out.
Robertson says the property offers the flexibility to enjoy farming alongside a country lifestyle.
“It is very much a lifestyle farm,” she says.
“But it's on the bigger side of a lifestyle farm.”
Kylie Dulhunty is a journalist with more than 20 years experience covering everything from court to health. Today, Kylie loves nothing more than turning market trends, industry insights and epic property sales - residential, rural and commercial - into captivating stories.