BRF 'attentive to investment'
BRF is on the cusp of completing a trio of intercontinental takeovers and, rather than sitting back and enjoying its investment, the multimillion-dollar deals have given the company an appetite for global “expansion”.
Its strategy remains firmly fixed on expanding its reach, presence and influence in emerging markets such as the Middle East, south-east Asia, Africa and Latin America, a company spokesman confirmed.
“BRF remains attentive to new investments and does not rule out new acquisitions, in view of the strategy to strengthen its presence in emerging markets… but we will not buy to buy,” added the spokesman. “Our strategy includes access [to] local markets, strengthening BRF’s brands, as well as distributing and expanding its product portfolio around the globe.”
'Milestone'
Last week BRF, which claims to be the 10th-largest food company in the world, finalised the $360m takeover of Thailand’s largest cooked poultry exporter - Golden Food Siam (GFS).
Completion of the investment in GFS followed weeks of protracted talks directed through BRF’s subsidiary BRF GmbH. Announcing the deal on 3 December, Pedro Faria, CEO of BRF, hailed it as a “milestone” in the company’s six-year history.
A spokesman for BRF added: “The deal will enable the company to diversify its global footprint, while also generating synergies across diverse markets in Europe and Asia.”
A £34m deal
Completion of deals with Campo Austral and Universal Meats, from Argentina and the UK respectively, will apparently be made public by the end of the week. When combined with the deal in Thailand, BRF will have invested $496m across three countries.
The company confirmed it made Universal Meats – a British food manufacturer of beef, poultry and tuna – an offer of £34m ($51.2m) last week.
The same spokesman confirmed BRF is “100% sure” the offer will be accepted, despite it being “subject to the satisfaction of the conditions” set out in a legally binding bilateral memorandum of understanding (MOU).
On the $85m deal with Argentinian firm Campo Austral, the BRF spokesman said: “The transaction marks the entry of BRF into the country’s pork market. When the deal is concluded, we will become the second-largest player in Argentina’s pork market.”
BRF has been coy on its agenda for expansion following the tri-continental deals, but did not rule out further acquisitions, saying only they were “attentive to new investments”.
