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BRF Brasil Foods, in partnership with Copercampos, today unveils the industrial unit located in Campos Novos in the upstate region of Santa Catarina. With a total investment of R$ 145 million, the plant is to create 1,800 direct and 450 indirect jobs, when fully operational. A total of 400 employees have already been engaged for the initial operations.
The plant has been designed to meet the requirements of the principal world markets and occupies a site of 172 hectares, with a constructed area of 32 thousand square meters. At the outset of activities, there will be a daily throughput of 1,000 hogs, a number which will be slowly ramped up until December 2012, when the daily slaughtering rate is to reach 7,000 hogs. The plant will also produce in natura meat cuts and supply raw materials for use in the processing of industrialized products at other BRF units. Annual output is estimated at 151 thousand tons of pork, the larger part of this being for export.
Copercampos began construction of the unit in 2007 and in April of last year concluded a partnership agreement with BRF, which acquired the right of use of the plant for a 10-year period. To ensure the finalization of the plant, the company injected R$ 63 million in the project. The agreement also gives BRF the right to exercise a purchase option on the unit. Given the strategic importance of the plant, the company, in mutual agreement with Copercampos, has decided to exercise its purchase option. BRF will remain responsible for the management of the entire manufacturing process, while Copercampos will supply the livestock for slaughter. The cooperative is a traditional partner of BRF. Among the leading cooperatives in the region, with four farms and 78 outgrowers, Copercampos is one of the company’s principal suppliers of grains such as corn and soybeans.
The new plant is a strategic component of BRF’s growth and internationalization plan. The unit has been built according to advanced technology and sustainability standards, allowing production to be destined for the most demanding of world markets. “The Campos Novos plant will bring us additional competitive advantages in serving the potential increase in international demand with the opening of new markets, such as China”, says José Antônio Fay, BRF’s Chief Executive Officer.
With the inauguration of the plant, still further efficiency will be gained in the company’s hog processing business in Santa Catarina. BRF currently has a total of 12 production units and two distribution centers in the state and employs more than 20,000 direct employees and integrated outgrowers. In addition to the proximity to other units of the company, Campos Novos is strategically located, being sited close to highways connecting the principal ports in the state such as those of Navegantes and Itajaí.
For Coopercampos’ CEO, Luiz Carlos Chiocca, the story of the region and the muncipality of Campos Novos will be divided into two: before and after the installation of the processing plant. “There will be a greater generation of employment and income, while the muncipal and state authorities will be able to track this development, given the return from the business in the form of tax revenues. For Copercampos’ members, the plant favors the consumption of corn and hogs, injecting liquidity into the market as well as promoting enhancement in the value of the assets of members and those of the local community as a whole”, Chiocca points out.
Since the signing of the agreement with Copercampos, BRF has provided technical consultancy services in the construction of the plant. The unit thus complies with the company’s sustainability parameters. Among these we might highlight: rainwater harvesting pools, the correct disposal of waste, composting of organic waste, reduction in the use of electricity and reforestation of areas contiguous to the plant.
BRF Brasil Foods
