Australia's largest rabbit farm is up for sale and food packaging company EasyFood is about to buy the shares.

The farm found north of Kyogle has 4000 breeding does under the care of Allan Clarke and a team of 15 specialists. For close to ten years, the team has tried to market rabbit meat from the lowly poor man's chicken to a specialty dish.

The marketing efforts failed; however, putting more than $2 million in taxpayers' investments at risk. More than 30 investors largely from Queensland sank in $3.2 million to support the Border Range Rabbit Farm near the northern New South Wales town five years ago.

Inspite of the $424,052 in government subsidies for research and development tax rebates, the farm's operators, Red Shed Holdings, posted a pre-tax loss of nearly $197,000 during the 2009 financial year.

The losses puts the $5.5 million 120 hectare farm on sale. Melbourne-based EasyFood pounced immediately with a $1.2 million commitment. The packaging company is raising a total of $3.3 million from investors before the end of January 2011.

EasyFood is a popular brand with diet industry. Like the rabbit farm, EasyFood is receiving an unspecified amount of government research and development tax rebates.