THE north's largest private company Moy Park has been purchased by US poultry giant Pilgrim's Pride in a deal worth £1 billion.
The UK’s biggest poultry producer has been snapped up just three months after being put on the market by Brazilian owner JBS and is the company's fourth new boss in less than a decade.
JBS acquired the meat producer for £943 million in 2015 from fellow Brazilian firm Marfrig, who purchased Moy Park back in 2008 from the OSI Group.
Pilgrim's employs approximately 42,000 people and operate chicken processing plants and prepared-foods facilities in America, Puerto Rico and Mexico. They anticipate incremental annual revenue of approximately £1.5 billion as a result of the transaction, which safeguards existing jobs.
JBS owns 79 per cent of Pilgrim's and appoints a number of directors to its board, but has said the Moy Park deal is "unaffiliated with JBS".
Pilgrim's chief executive officer Bill Lovette believes the latest acquisition will allow the firm to become a "global player" and gain a foothold in the lucrative UK and European markets.
"Moy Park represents a logical next step in the evolution of our geographical and brands footprint. The acquisition gives us access to the attractive UK and European markets, which advances our strategy of diversifying our portfolio to be more global while reducing volatility across our businesses.
"Moy Park strengthens Pilgrim’s leading portfolio of brands and brings strong value-added innovation capabilities, access to new markets, a best-in-class production platform and strong farmer partner relationships," he said.
Chief executive of Moy Park Janet McCollum said she was looking forward to the "new and exciting phase"of the company's development.
“This announcement is a positive development for Moy Park and all our colleagues employed across the business. Pilgrim’s is one of the leading chicken producers in the world with a proven track record and we see great opportunities for Moy Park as part of this successful business."
"Joining Pilgrim’s gives us the opportunity to accelerate our growth plans, share best practices and leverage Pilgrim’s expertise and operational excellence," she added.
The new owners have been welcomed by UUP leader Robin Swann, but he called on them to confirm their lasting commitment to Northern Ireland.
"It had been a concern for some that the company may have been acquired by a firm that neither had the experience of processing chickens nor really understood how the global poultry market worked. Thankfully those concerns have not come to fruition as Pilgrim’s are one of the leading producers of poultry meat in the world.
“With Brexit coming around the corner, this is a strong vote of confidence in the strength of the local market that a Brazilian owned company has decided to use a Northern Ireland as a gateway into the lucrative UK and European markets."
Founded in Moygashel in 1943, Moy Park has grown into one of the UK's top 10 food companies, Northern Ireland's largest private sector business and one of Europe's leading poultry producers.
It has production sites in Dungannon and Ballymena in addition to a processing site in Craigavon, employing over 6,300 across the north.
The company, which has an annual turnover in excess of £1.4 billion, reported a 7.4 per cent rise in sales in the second quarter of the year to £392 million and pre-tax profits of £11.5 million.
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