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Westfleisch: Back on the road to success in 2016

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A selection of pictures of the General Meeting can be found here.


20 June 2016

 

Meat marketer from Münster/Germany at an all‐time high in sales and production / Sales‐decline in fiscal year 2015, first six months of 2016 bring back bright prospects / All options for Paderborn site Münster.

The Westfleisch‐Group is back on track. Oversupplied markets, sales crises and poorly executed export across the industry shaped the past fiscal year of the cooperative based in Münster. The group closed 2015 at an alltime high in meat sales, as stated by the new member ofthe Executive Board Christian Leding (51) at Westfleisch SCE´s General Meeting on Monday, June 20, 2016.

Westfleisch: Rank 5 in Europe, rank 3 in Germany

In the recent years, Westfleisch has continued the upward trend with 980,300 tons of meat and meat products. Production increased in 2015 by 3 % compared to the previous year. Turnovers of the group amounted to 2.417 bn euros ‐ 3.9 % less than a year ago. Westfleisch is well positioned with rank 5 in Europe and 3 in Germany, Leding underlined.

The company has slaughtered more than 7.69 m pigs (+2.3 %), 379,000 cattle (+7.4 %) and 70,000 calves (+9.8 %) in 2015 and thus was in all divisions well above the national average.

Successful start in 2016

The cooperative has performed a positive turnaround in the first quarter of the current fiscal year 2016, Carsten Schruck (43), who is in charge of the departments finance, IT and HR within the Executive Board, highlighted to the about 350 members and shareholders of the meeting. With a group‐wide cost reduction and restructuring program of the category "pork", the executive managers have responded successfully to the slumps of the 2015 financial year. Leding, who had taken over the management of purchasing, sales and technology from Dr. Helfried Giesen at the beginning of 2016, said: "Westfleisch remains independent, crisis‐proof and capable of action."

All‐time high in sales and slaughter rates

In exporting and further processing Westfleisch succeeded already in 2015. Shipment to the PR of China increased by about 80 %, one third of the European total pork export volume to the PR of China is contributed by Westfleisch. The processing sites of the group, WestfalenLand (MAPproducts and meat based convenience) and Gustoland (sausage and cooked ham specialties) have been continuously expanded. Investments in modern manufacturing engineering are reflecting positive in the annual results. The processing sites have raised their share in sales to about 30 % (27 % prev. year), sales of retail packed products and convenience reached a record with an increase of 5.4 %.

All options open for the Paderborn site

For the Westfleisch site at Paderborn "all options are possible" after the major fire earlier this February. As stated by Leding, after the economic total loss, various opportunities for a restart are planned currently. Immediately after the fire, a central hub for fatstock was established on site for the agricultural contracting partners in the region.

Social Charter implemented

Together with other market participants Westfleisch signed the "Offensive of German Meat Marketers" last year. Therefore, the groups own subsidiary companies for temporary work and work contracts have reintegrated more than 1,000 employees back into its own group structure from former external employment early 2016.

WestCrown ahead of schedule

WestCrown in Dissen, the more recent joint venture of Westfleisch and Danish Crown, is designated to increasecapacity and strengthen its market position for deboned sows. The company is off to a good start in February thisyear, reported Leding, and a current capacity of about 11,000 sows per week have been over plan.

The Westfleisch group of companies

Westfleisch is the no. 3 meat marketer in Germany and ranks amongst the top 5 in Europe. The international company, based in Münster, slaughters, cuts, processes and refines meat. In 2015 the company sold over 980,300 tons of meat and generated turnovers of 2.4 billion Euros. Westfleisch is owned by about 4,000 farmers in North West Germany and the Netherlands. On the basis of cooperation contract, they breed pigs, cattle and calves. Westfleisch has approximately 5,000 employees.

Operating figures20152014+/-
Turnovers2,417 m €2,514 m €- 3.9 %
Sales980,300 t948,000 t+ 3.0 %
  Export426,100 t412,400 t+ 2.6 %
Total assets513.7 m €479.3 m €+ 7.2 %
Owner's equity224.4 m €212.6 m €+ 5.6 %
  Equity quote43.7 %44.4 %+ 0.7 %
 
Slaughter capacity20152014+/-
Pigs27.69 m7.58 m+ 2.3 %
Cattle378,600349,900+ 7.4 %
Calves69,60062,850+ 9.8 %

 

All figures Westfleisch-Group      2 excl. sows