Poland’s Drobimex plans US$13m investment to boost output

Drobimex currently operates two Poland-based facilities in Szczecin-Dąbie and Goleniowo, both located in the country’s north-western Zachnodniopomorskie region. The plants have a combined workforce of some 680, reported local news agency PAP.

Roppel said that, over the years ahead, the planned investment will allow the company to increase the slaughter capacity of its facility in Szczecin-Dąbie from the current 105,000 head of chicken per day to as much as 160,000 head per day. This is expected to expand the facility’s output by more than 52%.

The chief executive said new workers are to be taken on at the facilities, but it was too early to say how many jobs would be created.

To increase the output capacity of its facility in Goleniowo, Drobimex is aiming to acquire a new meat slicing and packing line which will be installed at the factory. The company estimates the purchase will be worth some PLN12m (US$3.9m).

The announcement of investment plans follows the release of Drobimex’s improved annual results. In the financial year 2012/2013, the poultry processor reported sales of about PLN350m (US$114.3m), an increase of 3.6% over a year earlier.

Drobimex is currently the largest supplier of poultry parts to US fast food chain Kentucky Fried Chicken in the Polish market. In addition to this, the poultry processor says that close to 30% of its output is intended for export sales, mostly to a number of European Union markets, such as the UK, Germany, France, Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Other key export markets for the poultry processor include Russia and Azerbaijan.

Set up in 1954, Drobimex is headquartered in Szczecin. In 2002, the Polish company was taken over by German poultry processor PHW Group.