Slaney Foods is a joint venture formed in 2000 between Linden Foods, a northern Irish meat processor, and the Allen family, the original founders of the Slaney company. ABP will acquire the Allen family’s 50% stake in Slaney, creating a new partnership with Linden.

Slaney currently accounts for about 6% of the national cattle kill while ICM processes 40% of the Irish sheep kill. The acquisition will see ABP move into sheep slaughtering in the Republic of Ireland for the first time in a good many years.

No fee has been disclosed, while the deal is subject to clearance by the competition authority.

Commenting on the deal, Linden Foods chairman Trevor Lockhart said the Allen family had been “exceptional” partners for the last 15 years or so.

“During that time the company has invested heavily to create some of the best processing assets in the country,” added Lockhart.

“At ABP we have a very successful track record with joint venture projects over many years and we have high hopes for this new partnership with Slaney Foods,” added ABP chief executive Paul Finnerty.

History of Slaney

Bert Allen and his brothers set up the Slaney business in Bunclody in the late 1960s and were the first to export Irish lamb to France. In 2000, Allen sold 50% of his shares in Slaney to Linden Foods to form a new joint venture, Slaney Foods. Around the same time, Slaney acquired a majority stake (91-92%) in the ICM business from Glanbia.

This allowed Slaney meats to focus solely on beef processing with all sheep processing left to ICM. Today, Slaney Meats operates one of Ireland’s most modern cattle processing facilities at its site in Bunclody, Co Wexford, while ICM operates from two processing sites located in Navan, Co Meath and Camolin, Co Wexford.

Slaney Foods

Slaney’s processing facility in Bunclody is considered one of the best in the industry with some €20m invested into the site since 2001. A new boning hall was opened in 2010 as well investment in a new lairage facility and processing lines.

Slaney processes 85,000 head of cattle per year, or about 6% of the national kill. The key retail partner for Slaney in Ireland is the German discounter Lidl, while it has major contracts in the UK foodservice industry. In Europe it works closely with the Dutch retailer Albert Heijn.

Slaney’s key retail brands are Slaney Gold and Slaney Valley Beef, while it also offers organic options. One of Slaney’s biggest contracts is with McDonald’s, which they supply forequarter minced meat to for manufacturing burgers.

Irish Country Meats

ICM was originally owned by Glanbia before it was offloaded to Slaney Foods in 2000. In this deal, Slaney acquired 91% to 92% ownership of ICM, while the remaining 8% to 9% stake stayed with current managing director of ICM Joe Hyland.

Acquiring ICM allowed the newly formed Slaney joint venture to consolidate its operations with all sheep processing left to ICM, while Slaney Meats concentrated solely on beef processing.

ICM accounts for 40% of the national sheep kill, processing 900,000 head of sheep annually. Operating from two facilities located in Navan and Camolin, ICM has also invested significantly in recent times. Up to €10m has been invested since 2000, with a new processing line recently installed.

ICM also purchased a Belgian lamb processor, Lonhinne, in 2011 which it uses as a processing and distribution hub for its markets in northern Europe.