Negotiations are ongoing between the two current owners of Turkish poultry company, Banvit, on its future. A Middle Eastern sovereign fund may opt to continue its 40% share, or this may be purchased by the majority owner, BRF.
Earlier this week, BRF S.A. announced it is in discussion with the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) over the conditions governing their joint ownership of TBQ Foods GmbH (TBQ).
Until December 15, the authority has the option to sell its interests in TBQ to BRF Foods GmbH.
A holding company, TBQ controls Turkish halal poultry meat company, Banvit Bandırma Vitaminli Yem Sanayi Anonim Şirketi (Banvit). BRF Foods is owned by BRF S.A.
According to one of the company’s executives, BRF would prefer QIA to maintain its 40% stake in TBQ, reported Reuters.
He said that the partnership had helped Banvit — which is 91% controlled by TBQ — to expand its business.
However, BRF Chief Financial Officer Carlos Moura said that the company has sufficient cash in hand to take over TBQ if QIA opts to sell its interests. He estimates this would cost the firm BRF468 million real (BRL; US$82 million).
More on Banvit and BRF
According to the company’s web site, Banvit A.S. was founded in 1968, and expanded to become the leading poultry company in Turkey.
In early 2017, BRF acquired a majority share in Banvit. While it owned 60%, the remaining share was taken by the QIA, a sovereign fund of Qatar.
At the time, Banvit was a fully integrated business in Turkey. It operated five feed plants, four hatcheries and five production plants. The product portfolio included chicken, turkey, deli products and convenience foods. Among its export destinations were Eastern Europe, Middle East, Far East and former Soviet republics.
Shortly before the acquisition, BRF had launched a new halal meat company in the United Arab Emirates. To be named OneFoods, Banvit was added to the new entity, focusing on halal poultry production.
Earlier this year, BRF concluded the sale of its animal feed manufacturing and poultry hatchery in Romania. These had been part of its subsidiaries, Banvit and Nutrinvestment.
With annual slaughterings of around 2.2 billion birds, Brazil-based BRF is the world’s second largest poultry meat producer, according to WATTPoultry.com’s Top Poultry Companies database.
Formerly named Brasil Foods, BRF was formed by the merger of Sadia and Perdigão. It produces turkeys as well as broiler chickens, and is among the largest animal feed companies in the world. Operating on an international scale, BRF products are sold in more than 110 countries.
