Astral Foods poultry director Frans van Heerden to resign

SOUTH AFRICA – Frans van Heerden is resigning as both the executive director and managing director of Poultry Commercial at Astral Foods.

His resignation will take effect on January 30, 2025, coinciding with the company’s next annual general meeting. 

According to Astral Foods, van Heerden has accepted a position outside the poultry sector.

Van Heerden has been with Astral Foods for 18 years, assuming the managing director role in November 2020 and the executive director role in October 2021. 

He began his career at the company as part of the internal audit team.

The chairman of Astral Foods, Theunis Eloff, expressed gratitude for van Heerden’s significant contributions to the organization during his tenure.

Chris Schutte, the current CEO of Astral Foods, is also set to leave the company on January 30, 2025, after announcing his retirement plans. 

Schutte has been part of Astral Foods since 2002 and has held the CEO position since 2009.

Astral Foods is recognized as Africa’s largest poultry producer and ranks 33rd globally. 

In the past year, the company processed 290 million broilers and is the 100th largest feed producer in the world, with nearly 1.9 million metric tons produced in the same period.

This has been a busy year for Astral Foods.

For instance, the company announced that it is expanding its GOLDI Chicken crumbed product line with the introduction of smaller packaging options. 

Consumers will soon find 480g and 500g packs alongside the traditional 1kg package, providing more flexibility for different meal occasions.

Additonally, a securities notice on the company’s website in September revealed that Truffle Asset Management, an investment firm from South Africa, recently purchased 10.48% of the company’s ordinary shares.

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