Jobs saved in Vion meat plants sale

Reporter

Tuesday 5 March 2013

AROUND 1500 jobs have been saved at Scottish meat-processing plants in a multimillion-pound buyout deal.

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James Johnstone and Victoria Weldon

Birmingham-based 2 Sisters Food Group has announced it will purchase 11 plants from Dutch company Vion, which is withdrawing from UK food operations.

The deal secures the future of poultry plants in Coupar Angus, Perthshire, which employs around 800 people, and Cambuslang, near Glasgow, which has around 410 workers, as well as a red-meat plant at Portlethen in Aberdeenshire with 320 staff.

The move has been welcomed by the National Farmers' Union of Scotland (NFUS), which claimed it has brought an end to the uncertainty and given farmers confidence to continue supplying the sites.NFUS vice-president Rob Livesey said: "We will meet with 2 Sisters management in due course to get a feel for its plans for Scotland. Recent headline-grabbing issues within the processed food sector have shown there are genuine opportunities for Scotland to deliver the traceability, provenance and quality consumers want. "Backed by greater retailer commitment to home-produced products, these Scottish sites are ideally placed to meet that demand with meat produced on Scottish farms. "The McIntosh Donald plant at Portlethen is one of the big five Scottish abattoirs and already heavily committed to the Scotch brand. It is embedded in Scottish agriculture's feeding heartland and hundreds of Scottish farmers send significant numbers of top-quality cattle to this plant. "Its sale as a going concern will bring uncertainty to an end and allow farmers to continue supplying the plant with some confidence."The Vion-operated Halls of Broxburn sausage factory closed last month with 1700 workers losing their jobs when the firm said it wanted to concentrate on its business in the Netherlands and Germany.The agreement for the rest of the company's sites – including eight plants in England and Wales – has been reached with Boparan Holdings, the holding company for 2 Sisters.Ranjit Singh, chief executive of 2 Sisters, said: "We are delighted to be acquiring Vion UK's poultry and red-meat businesses. They have faced significant uncertainty and tough trading in recent months but today's acquisition secures a viable future."This acquisition will safeguard a key supply chain for high-quality British poultry and meat, offering reassurance to farmers in England, Scotland and Wales and upholding the quality and provenance UK customers and consumers deserve."We look forward to welcoming Vion colleagues to 2 Sisters Food Group and to working together to grow our business."Peter Barr, chairman of Vion UK, said: "We are pleased to have reached such a positive conclusion to our discussions with 2 Sisters, one of the food sector's most successful and respected businesses."We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our employees for their support and commitment to the business during these challenging times and to wish the 2 Sisters team every success with the newly expanded operation."John Swinney MSP, Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth in the Scottish Government, added he was "delighted" by the buyout and the job security it has brought.He said: "I first called for a sale last November because of the uncertainty facing Vion and its importance to the Scottish food sector. "This announcement is a significant step forward and my officials and I look forward to working with 2 Sisters over the coming months, in order to secure a sustainable future for its plants in Scotland."

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Jobs saved in Vion meat plants sale

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