Privately-owned Wegdam Holding BV acquired all assets of Tilly Sabco Bretagne SAS for an undisclosed fee this week, saving jobs in the commune of Guerlesquin, in the Finistère department of Brittany, an area of high unemployment.
Wegdam Foods owner and CEO Brian Wegdam told GlobalMeatNews he will shut Tilly Sabco’s “unprofitable” slaughterhouse. He confirmed that 134 jobs, already at risk as the French company was placed in receivership in July and faced administration, would not be saved.
However, Wegdam said the acquisition is a “big step in the right direction for us – it secures our supply and our production of chicken [frankfurters].
“We want to start as soon as possible with the production of chicken franks because we are out of stock – we need the franks. We want to start and go full-speed ahead as soon with the production of chicken franks,” he added.
Production saved
Before Tilly Sabco was placed in receivership in July, Wegdam Foods was the producer’s largest client. Its swoop to save parts of the business from administration means Wegdam has secured its supply of poultry by bringing production in-house.
Haaksbergen-based Wegdam Foods from the Netherlands, claims to be one of the largest exporters of frozen meats to Africa, where it operates a vast distribution network. Its acquisition of Tilly Sabco will help the company produce sizable volumes of poultry, primarily for export markets.
Chicken sausages – commonly called frankfurters in the Netherlands – are popular in Africa but the business has struggled to meet demand after Tilly Sabco went into receivership in July.
Big investment planned
Brain Wegdam said the acquisition will “create possibilities to expand” in other markets, namely the Middle East.
He is due to fly to France on Tuesday 20 December to address the staff at Tilly Sabco. He said that, in the near future, Tilly Sabco will be instructed to establish a logistics hub for Wegdam Foods.
The acquired business will be renamed Tilly Sabco International SAS. Wegdam expects the workforce to grow to 100-strong and has committed to “invest considerably” to realise this growth.