The Hojiblanca Group, one of the world’s biggest olive oil producers, is now entering the livestock market thanks to its fusion with a fellow Andalusian agricultural leader, Agropecuaria del Sur.
Hojiblanca already enjoys an annual turnover of 450 million euros ($603 million) and Agropecuaria del Sur 25 million euros ($33 million) and together aim at achieving a joint 550 million ($736 million) in the medium term, according to El País.
Hojiblanca President, José Moreno, said the integration, announced last week, was, “Another step towards the consolidation of a major multisectorial agri-food cooperative which could take advantage of synergies in sales and marketing, enjoy lower costs through joint purchasing and offer consumers quality products with certified origin.”
Hojiblanca, which has 92 olive oil co-ops in Andalusia and Castilla-La Mancha, 22 table olive co-ops and 120 supply subsidiaries, last year sold 180,000 tons of olive oil and 67,000 tons of able olives. It is Spain´s leading seller of packaged olive oil.
Agropecuaria del Sur has three main product lines: pork, veterinary products and animal fodder.
Clara Aguilera, Agriculture Minister for the Andalusian regional government, said such fusions “enhanced integration in the food chain,” adding “It is only with such large scale enterprises that we can contribute to the sustainability of the sector, improving its profitability and competitiveness, and promoting the internationalization of its products.”
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