THE nation’s second largest beef processor will pass into US hands following a surprise announcement this morning that Teys Investments Pty Ltd will sell its 50pc stake to joint venture partner Cargill.
A wholly-owned subsidiary of Cargill will purchase all of the issued share capital of Teys Investments from the Teys family shareholders.
As a result, Cargill will increase its ownership stake to 100pc of Teys Australia and Teys USA (Teys North American sales a distribution business), two of the primary operating companies which are currently jointly owned by Teys and Cargill.
With a diversified family shareholder base, the Teys family has decided it is the appropriate time to transfer the family’s interest to Cargill, a partner shareholder for the past 14 years and global leader in the food and protein industries.
The transfer of ownership provides continuity for Teys’ staff, partners and producers, and will ensure that it continues to serve as a leading provider of healthy, high-quality Australian beef products and a buyer of Australian livestock destined for local and international customers, a joint statement said.
Teys owns and operates a network of large, highly efficient beef processing plants in Queensland (Beenleigh, Biloela and Lakes Creek, near Rockhampton); Tamworth and Wagga Wagga (NSW) and Naracoorte (South Australia). It also manages large lotfeeding businesses (see entry in Beef Central’s recent Top 25 Lotfeeders report) at Condamine on Queensland’s Darling Downs, Jindalee in the NSW Riverina, and Charlton in Victoria. The company also runs a large value adding facility near Brisbane, and a state-of-the art aggregation, cold storage and distribution facility at the Port of Brisbane.
Brad Teys
“My grandfather started this business more than 75 years ago with his brothers, and the family values of integrity, quality and honesty have stayed constant as we’ve evolved into the global food brand we are today,” Teys executive chairman Brad Teys said.
“The Teys family is immensely proud to have grown our business into a premier provider of beef to our customers and Australian families. Cargill has been instrumental in our transformation into a world-class food company. We are confident they are the best owner to grow the business into the future.”
“As family-owned businesses, both Cargill and Teys share the same commitment to nourishing Australia and the rest of the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way,” said Jon Nash, executive vice president and leader of Cargill’s Food Enterprise.
“We are grateful to the Teys family for this opportunity to continue working alongside Australian livestock producers, who are pivotal to the agricultural supply chain, and to assure the delivery of high-quality and nutritious beef to family dinner tables across the country and globe.”
Completion of the change of ownership is subject to certain customary conditions precedent, including applicable regulatory approvals, and is expected to complete in the second half of 2025.
Cargill said it would name a new CEO of Teys in due course and work closely with Brad Teys to ensure a seamless transition.
About Teys
Teys has been delivering high quality Aussie beef to customers in Australia and around the world since the business was established as a humble retail butchery in 1946. Today, it offers a wide range of fresh beef, multi protein and value added product solutions for retail, foodservice or manufacturing.
About Cargill
Cargill is committed to providing food, ingredients, agricultural solutions, and industrial products to nourish the world in a safe, responsible, and sustainable way. Sitting at the heart of the supply chain, it partners with farmers and customers to source, make and deliver products that are vital for living.
The company employs about 160,000 staff, providing customers with life’s essentials so businesses can grow, communities prosper, and consumers live well. With 160 years of experience as a family company, Cargill looks ahead while remaining true to its values.
“We put people first. We reach higher. We do the right thing—today and for generations to Come,” is part of the company’s mantra.
- More details will be added here as they come to hand
- The original joint venture struck in 2011 between Teys and Cargill was the first story every published by Beef Central, back on 11 May 2011. Click here to access.
Having worked with the Teys family for 35 years I can’t think of a more deserving family to put the que in the rack with the utmost of pride and respect from all those who have done business with them.
Congratulations to all have done so much for the beef industry of Australia
Sorry I can not agree Teys purchased the Murgon abattoir and it never processed a beast again. It wrecked the local town where it was a major employer.
It removed processing capacity from Queensland which now with the greatly increased feedlotting industry we again are seeing long wait times for producers to get cattle processed with a corresponding low prices offered.
Meatworks for sale, just provided you have no intention of ever starting it up. https://southburnett.com.au/news2/2019/07/08/meatworks-for-sale-to-serious-buyer/
There are some factual errors and lack of historical context in your comment that demand correction, Paul.
1) Both the original owner/operator, the South Burnett Cooperative Meat Co, and the following owner, Bindaree Beef’s Andrew McDonald, went broke at Murgon trying to process cattle
2) Lengthy attempts to find a buyer to operate the site for its original purpose of meat processing were unsuccessful, after it closed in 2007. Chinese interests were still looking at the site in 2015. By any standard, fair notice was given, if anybody was seriously going to look at re-starting the chain at Murgon.
3) There was clearly no appetite from investors – either domestic or offshore – to restart the plant. Why? Because smaller plants are inevitably less efficient than larger ones, and the surplus processing capacity in the industry at that time meant plants were running at less than optimal efficiency. In the processing world (high turnover, low margin) that’s a ‘death of a thousand cuts.’
4) When Teys finally bought the mothballed site some time later, it clearly stated – from day-one – that it had no plans to use it for meat processing, but that it would be used for hides and tannery work only. Any suggestion that this was designed to ‘squeeze other competitors out’ does not stand up to scrutiny.
5) Any suggestion that Teys’ actions “wrecked the local town where it was a major employer” are just plain wrong. None of that can be blamed on Teys’ actions – but solely on the financial stress and decision to close the plant made by the two previous owners.
6) Teys did what it could to ‘re-purpose’ the site’s infrastructure, and at least provided a modicum of local labour through the hides/tannery work.
7) The key problem with the original Murgon business under the Co-op model was lack of working capital. The company simply did not have the funds to invest in upgrades to maintain or improve much-needed efficiency.
Editor
I wish Alan, Geoff, Brad and other family members all the best and a big thanks for the way they have conducted their business over the years. The family cattle business I have been part of found them to be the most honest and reliable operators that we di business with.
I wonder if the change of ownership has any impact on the imposition of US tariffs?
None that we can think of, Graeme – it will still be product of Australia