February 20, 2013

Cobb Europe upgrades to new headquarters in the UK

The new Cobb Europe headquarters at Colchester, UK, was officially opened, a sign of the company's commitment to further growth throughout the region.

The new headquarters, which is well situated for communication with London and within easy reach of London's City and Stansted airport's as well as the Harwich - Hook of Holland ferry link, is the base for Cobb activities throughout the region. 

Cobb president Jerry Moye says, "We've already made substantial investment in developing and expanding Cobb great-grandparent production facilities in the UK and we're now doubling the scale of our pedigree breeding operation in the Netherlands".

Two farm complexes in Norfolk which came to Cobb with the acquisition of the grandparent hatchery, have been expanded to provide accommodation for a total of 56,000 great grandparent stock. The farms now provide state-of-the-art housing and facilities, new feed units, transfer buildings and egg store together wirh upgraded security fencing and farm access, and separation of feed delivery vehicles to enhance biosecurity. The investment adds 15% to the capacity of the UK farms to meet the increasing demand for Cobb breeding stock across Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Cobb-Vantress, Inc. invested €12 million (US$15 million) in doubling the capacity of its Herveld pedigree farm in the Netherlands over the next 12 months, starting October 2012. Expansion of the farm, which came to Cobb from Hendrix Genetics as part of the acquisition of the Hybro breed, will include the construction of 13 new houses which are expected to be completed within 12 months, then refurbishment of the existing buildings will begin.  In 2011, the on-farm hatchery was renovated at a cost of €1.0 million (US$1.25 million), increasing the hatch capacity and becoming the company's first pedigree single-stage hatchery.

"This is an exciting time for the Cobb Europe Team. The investments that Cobb has and will continue to make in the region demonstrate our commitment to further contribute to the success of the industry in Europe, Middle East and Africa," adds Moye.