Unibic, the maker of Australia’s iconic ANZAC biscuits, has been placed in voluntary administration.

Production of biscuits at Unibic's Broadmeadows plant has come to a stop, potentially endangering the jobs of 170 people in Melbourne.

The administrators, insolvency law firm Lawler Draper Dillon, suggested the rising cost of raw ingredients and the pricing pressures applied by Coles and Woolworths may have been the cause of the insolvency.

Unibic has been producing biscuits, cakes and pastries since the 1950s and the ANZAC biscuit is an Australian household name, based on the First World War biscuits of oatmeal eaten by Australian soldiers.

The ANZAC name is licensed from the Returned Services League (RSL). Unibic also makes a wide variety of biscuits including home-brand ranges for the major supermarkets Coles and Woolworths and is believed to be Australia’s fourth biggest biscuit-manufacturer.

The Company's main creditors are now initiating legal action to recover their debts by seeking Federal Court orders to wind up the company.

Australian Food News