Danish Crown ends retail fresh meat operations in Germany
GERMANY – Danish Crown has announced plans to cease its retail fresh meat sales in Germany, citing uncompetitive operations as the primary reason.
The pork giant will wind down its Convenience division at the Oldenburg facility in northwest Germany by the end of February, impacting approximately 160 employees.
For over a decade, the Oldenburg Convenience division has handled the packaging of fresh meat for German retailers, with work split between a bacon and deli factory in Oldenburg and a slaughterhouse in Essen, located further south.
Per Fischer Larsen, Danish Crown’s senior vice president, explained the rationale behind the decision.
“The German market is highly competitive, and the costs associated with selling fresh meat to retailers are too high. We’ve determined that our current structure is not sustainable.”
The move comes as Danish Crown faces significant challenges, including high operational costs and a decline in the availability of slaughter pigs. The company’s CEO recently referred to the situation as a “crisis.”
Employees at the Oldenburg site are expected to be offered alternative roles within the company, either at the bacon and deli factory or at the Essen slaughterhouse, which will remain operational.
Addressing the situation, another senior vice president, Rasmus Aadal, said, “Although closing operations is never easy, we are optimistic about retaining the majority of the workforce. Over the next few weeks, we’ll engage with employee representatives to identify the best outcomes for affected staff.”
This development follows Danish Crown’s earlier announcements of restructuring efforts to cut costs.
In October, the company revealed plans to reduce its workforce by approximately 500 jobs in a bid to save US$73.2 million annually.
In April, Danish Crown also decided to shut down its slaughterhouse in Ringsted, Denmark, with the closure taking effect in mid-September.
That move aimed to reallocate US$36.6 million for future investments over the next three years.
Sign up HERE to receive our email newsletters with the latest news and insights from Africa and around the world, and follow us on our WhatsApp channel for updates.
