Dawn Meats looks to double in size following Elivia acquisition approval

01-Jul-2015 - Last updated on 02-Jul-2015 at 09:40 GMT

According to Dawn Meats the agreement positions the company to double in size

Irish processor Dawn Meat’s deal to acquire almost half of French farming cooperative Terrena’s beef processing division, Elivia, has been given the green light by the European Commission.

Announced in November last year, the agreement will initially see Dawn Meats acquire 49% of the division, with an option to increase its share to 70% by 2019.

The Commission came to the decision that the proposed transaction would not raise any competition concerns, as the companies’ combined market share remains modest "and the market share increments brought by the transaction would be limited".

According to Dawn Meats, the agreement positions the company to double in size, to a business with revenue of more than €2 billion, within the next four years.

Niall Browne, chief executive officer of Dawn Meats, said: "In a consolidating industry we believe that this deal brings considerable scale and knowledge sharing benefits to both parties.

"Our aim is to leverage our leadership position in traceability and sustainability so that we are at the vanguard of meat marketing internationally. Our scale, premium positioning and routes to market will benefit our customers and thousands of farmer suppliers in Ireland, the UK and now, via Elivia, in France."

The Elivia business is active throughout the beef value chain, but operates predominantly in France, and is the second largest processor of beef and veal in the country. It employs 2,600 staff and has annual revenues of more than €1bn. Dawn Meats supplies Irish and British red meat to supermarkets, foodservice, and restaurants in Ireland and the UK, and exports to more than 40 countries.

Current chief executive Guy Wermeister will continue to head of Elivia.