The reshaping of Ridley Corporation continued last week with the announcement of a $150 million deal to sell the company’s Cheetham salt business to an Asian investor, following the $77 million purchase a fortnight earlier of a large Victorian rendering business.

Publicly-listed Ridley Corp says it will concentrate more heavily on its agribusiness core, following the sale of Cheetham Salt to Hong Kong-based CK Life Science.

Ridley chairman John Spark said the sale would help transform Ridley into a focused animal nutrient, ingredient, and feed product supplier.

The deal provided flexibility to pursue further value-adding growth opportunities which would strengthen Ridley's position in the animal nutrition sector, as well as the production of strategically important ingredients in the protein value chain.

Growth in rendering

A fortnight earlier the company made its second large rendering business purchase.

Through its expanding rendering operations, Ridley now claims to be one is one of Australia’s largest processors of animal by-products, supplying a range of rendered products to service Australian and export markets, as well as delivering raw material for the company’s own stockfeed manufacturing operations.

Last month Ridley announced it had purchased BPL, Victoria’s largest rendering business of mammalian and poultry waste products, for $77 million.

The transaction was consistent with the company’s strategy to secure strategic feed ingredients, a statement said.

“The rendering business has a close fit with Ridley’s broader animal feed operations and is consistent with our strategy of securing the supply chain for the key raw materials and ingredients which fulfil an essential role in the provision of nutrition for livestock,” the statement said.

The BPL rendering business has a typical throughput of 240,000 tonnes a year, generating an annual turnover of more than $70 million.

In January last year, Ridley announced it had agreed to acquire Camilleri Stockfeeds, a NSW-based poultry and fish rendering business – the first stage of Ridley’s growth strategy to acquire rendering operations compatible with its core agribusiness activities.

The Camilleri rendering plant, near Maroota, converts raw animal tissue into various protein, fat, and mineral products comprising rich granular-type meals and liquid fats with specific nutritional components that are used in the production of animal and aquaculture stockfeed and pet food. Meals and oils are also traded by the business.

Other recent changes within Ridley’s operations have included:

• The 2011 sale of its 50 percent share in large integrated liquid stockfeed supplement manufacturer Champion Liquid Feeds, to Gardner Smith. 
• The closure in November last year of Ridley AgriProducts’ Brisbane Rumevite block manufacturing plant, consolidating its block production facilities at its expanded Townsville site, following the earlier completion of the purchase of the Townsville-based lick block manufacturer, Livestock Nutrition Technologies.

On its website, Ridley Corporation claims to be Australia’s largest and only national provider of high performance animal nutrition solutions, through its Ridley AgriProducts business.

Ridley AgriProducts produces complete rations, mineral concentrates, nutritional blocks and supplements for the beef, dairy, poultry, pig, sheep, and aquaculture industries.

• Ridley Corp (RIC) shares closed on Friday at $1.09, down 1c.