REG - Competition and Mkts - Merger Update: Boparan / ForFarmers

ForFarmers NVAnnouncement

19/03/2025 08:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
https://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20250319:nRSS2727Ba&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 2727B  Competition and Markets Authority  19 March 2025

CMA CLEARS POULTRY FEED DEAL

An independent inquiry group has cleared Boparan's deal to buy ForFarmers'
Burston and Radstock feed mills.

The Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) independent inquiry group has
cleared Boparan's proposed purchase of ForFarmers' Burston and Radstock feed
mill sites, following an in-depth Phase 2 investigation.

ForFarmers and Boparan (through 2Agriculture) both manufacture and supply
chicken feed and other types of poultry feed in the UK. 

The inquiry group's investigation has found that Boparan's purchase of
ForFarmers' Burston feed mill site could reduce the capacity available to
manufacture chicken feed for chicken suppliers in the area around the mill in
East Anglia. However, these suppliers will still have choice and the option to
switch providers due to competition from other chicken feed providers in the
market.

Having reviewed the evidence in the round, including the single response
received from the parties in response to its interim report, the inquiry group
does not believe the merger would lead to a substantial lessening of
competition.

Kirstin Baker, chair of the independent inquiry group, said:

"Having assessed the evidence and feedback to our interim report, which
suggested that competition would not be harmed, we have given this acquisition
clearance to proceed."

For more information, visit the Boparan / ForFarmers (Burston and Radstock
mills)
(https://www.gov.uk/cma-cases/boparan-slash-forfarmers-burston-and-radstock-mills-merger-inquiry)
 case page.

Notes to Editors:

1.   ForFarmers is a European manufacturer and supplier of animal feed,
based in the Netherlands. 2Agriculture, a subsidiary of Boparan, is one of the
UK's largest suppliers of poultry feed and supplies feed to Hook 2 Sisters, a
company affiliated with Boparan, as well as farmers on the open market.

2.   At the Phase 1 investigation stage, the CMA concluded that Boparan's
purchase of the Radstock feed mill site does not raise competition concerns
and the sale of this mill has completed.

3.   The CMA has a statutory duty to promote competition for the benefit of
consumers and assesses each case on its individual merits. This includes a
duty to investigate mergers that could raise competition concerns in the UK
where it has jurisdiction to do so. In this case, the CMA has concluded that
the CMA has jurisdiction to review this merger because a relevant merger
situation has been created: each of Boparan and ForFarmers' Burston and
Radstock feed mills is an enterprise that will cease to be distinct as a
result of the merger and the turnover test is met.  More information on the
CMA's mergers jurisdiction and procedure can be read on its guidance page
(https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mergers-guidance-on-the-cmas-jurisdiction-and-procedure)
.

4.   All media enquiries should be directed to the CMA press office by email
on press@cma.gov.uk (mailto:press@cma.gov.uk) , or by phone on 020 3738 6460.

 

 

 

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  MERQKLBFEXLXBBF