EU approves Brazilian takeover of poultry processor Moy Park

Moy Park formally became part of the £1.2bn Brazilian Marfrig Group yesterday, after gaining EU approval.

The deal, first announced in June, involves Marfrig acquiring Moy Park and the poultry interests of Chicago-based OSI in Brazil. As a result OSI becomes a significant shareholder in the Marfrig Group.

Marfrig’s founder and president, Marcos Antonio Molina dos Santos, said: “Moy Park has an enviable, solid reputation with consumers and customers. We look forward to working with all the people in Moy Park to continue to build a strong, EU-based food business.

He added that Moy Park will be maintaining its strong commitment to local farming and primary production. It has more than 500 producers supplying chicken in Northern Ireland and England and the company has spent the last six years investing £120m in its business.

Nigel Dunlop, who took over as managing director of Moy Park in January 2008, added: “We are delighted to now be part of the Marfrig Group. Our plan, already in place, is to establish Moy Park as the market’s ‘Premier Provider’ – this means providing consumers with genuinely high quality, locally farmed and locally produced food at a price that provides a fair return to us and our hundreds of contract farmers.

“A business like ours requires continual and consistent investment in people and plant in order to stay ahead. Marfrig has more than demonstrated, in its more than 20 years of phenomenal growth, that a steady capital investment stream generates both medium and long-term rewards.”

Moy Park has its headquarters in Northern Ireland and employs some 7000 people in its operations there, England, France and The Netherlands. Current annual sales are around £700m.