US company Smithfield, the world's largest processor of pork, has continued its campaign on the Romanian market by acquiring one of the top food product distributors on the market, Agroalim Distribution, and the largest refrigerated warehouse, Frigorifer Tulcea.
Both companies, which together have annual deals of 30 million euros, were developed by Lebanese investor Mounir Halawany.
Mounir Halawany owns Agroalim Group, which has an annual turnover of 60 million euros and close ties with the majority shareholders of another Romanian charcuterie producer, Caroli-Gourmet.
"We will be by far the largest meat producer in Romania, way ahead of the next largest producer. We have bought two operators on the Romanian market and have also acquired a logistics company with a fleet of more than 100 trucks that is currently operating on the market," said Smithfield Foods CEO Joseph W. Luter III.
Agroalim officials chose not to comment on the deal, the value of which has not been disclosed.
Last year Smithfield paid 33 million dollars (30 million euros) for the assets of the former pig fattening complex ComTim Timisoara (starting such a business from scratch would require the investment of 250-300 million dollars). The deal was carried out in two stages: the largest part was acquired from a group of Italian investors grouped under Agrotorvis Srl; while the remaining part was bought from ComTim Group, a business developed by domestic investor Nick Cojocaru together with a group of Australian investors. Several months ago, the American company started hiring personnel for ComTim and announced an investment plan of 350 million dollars during an important delegation to Bucharest.
They also expressed their interest in buying two production facilities in Salonta. From one of these - the raw-dried charcuterie plant of Principal Construct of Prahova - they did not receive a positive answer in respect of possible acquisition. With the other facility in Salonta, Prodaliment, which is owned by local investor Sandu Nicolae, the American company has recently begun negotiations for acquisition of the majority stake.
Luter believes the Romanian market has high potential and is the most important target for Americans in Eastern Europe, being "the bread basket" or "Europe's Iowa" - namely the biggest consumers of bread in Europe.
"The pork industry in Western Europe does not have the best location on the continent and major players have already made capital investments that they will have to be content with in the future - that is why they cannot easily make up their minds to enter Eastern Europe and create competition for what they have in the West," said Luter. He hopes pork consumption, which has been on the decline in recent years, will rise in Romania.
stelian.negrea@zf.ro
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