Sovereign to double chicken output
South African poultry producer, Sovereign Food Investments, aims to double chicken output from 21.8 million chickens a year by 2010 to achieve a greater share of the local chicken industry.
The company is entering into the second phase of the expansion plan. CEO Mike Davis said spending on the next step would cost R150 million (€16 million). The first phase of the expansion plan cost of R99.5 million (€10.5 million).
Sovereign has reported full-year results to end-February – revenue has grown to R459 million (€49 million) from R399 million (€42 million) from the previous year.
The South African chicken market is worth R12 – R13 billion (€1.3 – 1.4 billion) a year. There is a surge in domestic consumption of chicken. Davis believes this is due to chicken being a more viable source of protein as it was cheaper than red meat, as well as a growing trend towards viewing chicken as a healthier protein.
Davis added that while Sovereign was concentrating on capturing a larger slice of the local market, it would consider exporting in the next 4 – 5 years.
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