Alberta judge had harsh words for Sunterra Farms Ltd. for kiting cheques between its Alberta and United States hog businesses, resulting in $35 million in losses for lender Compeer Financial PCA.
He also found president Ray Price guilty.
In a Thursday statement, Price said, “I want to be very clear about one thing: at no time did I personally benefit from the matters currently before the court, nor was there ever any intention to do so.”
All decisions, he said, were made “with the goal of sustaining the business, protecting employees and preserving a food system that supports thousands of Canadian and U.S. families.
“There were no hidden accounts, no personal enrichment and no diversion of funds for individual use.
"Any suggestion otherwise fundamentally misrepresents who I am and how I have conducted myself throughout my career,” Price said.
For a short time Sunterra owned a hog-packing plant in Clinton which was started by the Terpstra family which declared it bankrupt.
