Dairy co-op groups Eurial and Agrial announce merger plans

French dairy co-operative umbrella groups Eurial and Agrial have agreed to merge under a two-phase process, with Eurial as the surviving entity, it was announced.

 

Starting autumn (which began in late September), under the first phase of the merger process, all commercial and industrial dairy activities will be brought together in the same entity, known as Eurial.

 

The second phase, which is the final merger, will take place in June 2016, a year after the agreement to merge was signed on June 30 this year.

 

The group will be structured around six major business areas:

 

Butter, notably speciality butter with the Grand Fermage brand, and cream.

 

By 2016, the new grouping would be the second-largest French cooperative dairy group with:

 

22 industrial sites

 

"In a difficult and complex context for the dairy industry and following the abolishment of milk quotas, this large new group will reinforce its foothold in its markets, to the benefit of its producers", the press release said.

 

It added that innovation would be at the core of the group's corporate strategy. "The goal shared by the partners is to develop a multi-specialist, solid and added value-creating group".

 

Earlier, Agrial disposed of its two poultry processing plants-one for chicken located at Chailand in the Loire and the other for turkey in Plumetot in lower Normandy-selling them to LDC, which is one of France's major poultry suppliers.

EURIAL: AN OVERVIEW

 

Eurial was founded over 20 years ago and brings together dairy farms belonging to five cooperatives: UCAL, Colarena Presqu'île, Poitouraine, Pays de Gâtine and Valcrest.

 

Primarily a cheese-making group, Eurial has been the market leader in France for over a decade for goat's cheese with its Soignon brand. The group is now France's leading mozzarella producer. The group also has a strong foothold in the pre-sliced frozen cheese market (IQF). Its Grand Fermage brand is the leading brand in the speciality butter segment (Noirmoutier sea salt butter and

Charentes-Poitou Protected Designation of Origin butter).

Key facts and figures

 

2,440 farms located in 21 départements in Western France and in the Rhone-Alps

16 industrial sites of which 13 are in France

AGRIAL: AN OVERVIEW

 

Agrial was founded in 2000 and is an agricultural and food processing cooperative group from Normandy with a foothold in Lower Normandy, the Loire Region, Brittany and the Centre Region.

 

Agrial is a multi-specialist group and is involved in farming, via its 12,000 farmer members in its area of coverage, and in the food processing industry, with processing facilities in France, Europe and the US: fresh and fresh ready-to-use vegetables (the Florette, Priméale and Créaline brands), ciders and apple juices (the Loïc Raison, Ecusson and Danao brands), meat and poultry, ultra-fresh dairy products and dairy ingredients.

 

In 2014, the Agrial Group generated turnover of €4.2 billion and EBITDA of €160 million. It has 12,000 co-workers.

 

Key facts and figures from Agrial's milk division

 

Six industrial sites