Safir Group continues poultry expansion

Having acquired two new poultry farms last year, Romania’s Safir Group now plans to expand its slaughterhouse capacity.

nd3000, BigStockPhoto.com
nd3000, BigStockPhoto.com

Having acquired two new poultry farms last year, Romania’s Safir Group now plans to expand its slaughterhouse capacity.

Safir Group’s shareholders supported the company’s plan to construct a new slaughterhouse with a capacity three times larger than the firm’s current facility, according to Ziarului Financiar. However, a request for state funding to the tune of RON21 million (US$5.27 million) was turned down.

Last year, there were just over 700 poultry businesses in Romania worth around RON4.3 billion (US$1.08 billion) — a decrease of 12 percent from the previous year.

With brands including Deliciosul de Vaslui, Zdravan Moldovenesc and Fomica, Safir Group’s performance went against this trend, and turnover was up by 15 percent from 2015 at the equivalent of 35 million Euros (US$41 million). This increase was mainly attributed to the recent acquisition of two poultry farms in Botosani.

Around 20 percent of Safir’s poultry production is exported, with leading markets including Estonia, Italy, and the Netherlands. Retailers account for about 40 percent of the firm’s sales.

Founded by Ghiorghi Safir in 1991, the Safir Group is based in Vaslui in eastern Romania, and comprises four main businesses — poultry farms, slaughterhouse, feed mill and protein recovery plant.

According to the firm’s web site, it has three poultry farms with a capacity of one million broilers per cycle. Purchased in 2000 and receiving significant investment in new processing technology, the capacity of the slaughterhouse had been increased to 16,500 metric tons per year by 2016. The firm’s feed mill — FNC Nutriva — was opened in 2013 and can produce up to 15 metric tons of pelleted poultry feed per hour, mainly for Safir’s own farms and those of its partners.

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