Maple Leaf Foods is putting its Ontario pork processing business up for sale again after a failed attempt to unload the facility at the height of the credit crunch.

 

The Toronto-based food processing company said Tuesday (May 25) it is seeing renewed interest from potential purchasers for the Burlington, Ontario-based operation amid improved economic conditions and easier access to credit.

 

Maple Leaf spokesman Nick Boland said the company is keeping its options open. "We're just starting the process again, so we're going to look at all avenues to generate the best buyer," Boland said. "It could be people in the industry -- certainly we're going to make sure we approach all of them -- but as well there might be some other people who are interested in a profitable, stable business in Ontario and meat processing."

 

The sale would mark the last major hurdle in Maple Leaf's restructuring of its protein business, which it began in 2007 with the goal of consolidating its pork processing operations in one facility in Brandon, Man., so it could focus on its branded meat, bakery and meals products.

 

"The sale of the Burlington business will complete the last phase of Maple Leaf's protein transformation journey and supports our commitment to refocus our growth in the value-added meat, meals and bakery business," chief financial officer Michael Vels said. "We are reinvigorating the sale process following renewed interest, including the potential of completing a sale to a producer group,'' he said.

 

An analyst said the sale of the Burlington facility would leave only a small hog processing plant in Lethbridge, Alta., for the company to sell in order to complete the restructuring of its protein business.

 

"Getting the Burlington piece out of the way would significantly reduce their exposure to the volatility of hog prices and the currency issues that they struggled with prior to 2006," the analyst said.

 

The Burlington facility, west of Toronto, was put on the block in 2008 but interested buyers weren't able to get the necessary financing due to the credit crunch.

 

"We had some parties that were interested in it and we did receive some offers, but at that point in time it was difficult to sell it because of the capital markets," Boland said. "Our interested parties were having trouble getting financing for it, so we decided to defer until the capital markets improved."