Griffin heirs sell remaining land

Fresh from the sale of their controlling shares in Fort Myers-based agribusiness company Alico, the heirs of citrus magnate Ben Hill Griffin Jr. sold their remaining land holdings recently.

According to a Dec. 29 report in the Orlando Sentinel, Lake Wales-based Atlantic Blue Group, the Griffin family company, sold the remaining 65,000 acres it owned to Southern Pine Plantations, a company based in Macon, Ga., that specializes in the acquisition and sale of rural lands.
Southern Pine paid $86 million for the Blue Head Ranch in Highlands and DeSoto counties, the Sentinel reported.

The family put the ranch land up for sale a year ago. “The current business climate, along with recent changes in tax law, gives us the unique opportunity to explore the possible sale of these assets to maximize value for our shareholders,” said David Koon, president and CEO of Atlantic Blue, in a statement in January 2013.