CALVADOS, Normandy – A joint venture between Avril Group and Tönnies have set April 1 as the start date of a new pork processing plant based in Vire (Calvados, Normandy). The plant, called “L’Atelier des Viandes de France” will compete for space among packaged meats sold in supermarkets and hypermarkets of France.
Production of pork products at the Atelier des Viandes de France will adhere to Avril’s “5F” quality guarantee that the pigs are born, raised, slaughtered, butchered and processed in France. Abera, a subsidiary of Avril Group, will supply the “5F” meat.
Tönnies will apply its expertise in swine and cattle slaughter to the processed products segment while broadening its range of fresh and processed pork sold in France.
“Opening this new plant is a strong signal, not only to Avril and its subsidiary Abera, but also the entire French pig sector and its breeders,” Fabrice Chapelle, director general of Abera, said in a news release. “Since 2013, France has been importing more pork than it exports. While a large share of these imports — and particularly fresh packaged meats — come from Germany, this new plant will combine products made in France with German expertise, and aim to recover the domestic markets lost to French pork.”
The European Commission is expected to announce the clearance of the Avril- Tönnies joint venture on March 16.
Avril Group is a French industrial and financial firm specializing in animal nutrition, human nutrition and renewable energy. The company’s brands include Diester, Sanders, Lesieur, Puget, Matines, Bunica, Taous and others.
Tönnies is a family owned company specializing in beef and pork slaughtering, butchery, processing and marketing. The company operates Germany-based processing plants in Rheda-Wiedenbrück, Beckum, Herzebrock, Kellinghusen, Kempten, Legden, Sögel and Weißenfels and Brørup, Denmark.
