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E3 Hook2Sisters, mergers and acquisitions in the egg sector, and the RSPCA reaches out
81 Plays1 month ago
In this episode of the Poultry Network Podcast, hosts Tom Willings and Tom Woolman reflect on a pivotal fortnight for the UK poultry sector.
🔹 Major Industry News: Hook2Sisters Sale
The episode opens with analysis of the landmark announcement that Hook2Sisters, the long-standing 50/50 joint venture between PD Hook and 2 Sisters Food Group, will be fully acquired by the Boparan Private Office—the investment vehicle of Ranjit Singh Boparan.
- This marks consolidation in the broiler supply chain.
- PD Hook will continue to operate a hatchery business, focusing on the independent market.
- Tom Willings gives a historical overview of the venture, which began in 2006 to secure chick and broiler supply chains for both companies.
🔹 Egg Sector Shake-Up
Attention then turns to a flurry of mergers and acquisitions in the egg sector, which, although smaller in scale, signal significant change:
- Noble Foods acquires Just Egg, enhancing their processed egg capability.
- Hardeman Group (Netherlands) takes over Bumblehole Foods, bringing a large European player into UK processing.
- The Griffiths family announces a joint venture with French firm Eureden, expanding processing ambitions beyond fresh shell egg.
These moves reflect an evolving focus on value-added egg products and defensive strategies to maintain customer relationships and production viability.
The hosts reflect on low per capita egg consumption in the UK compared to Europe, and opportunities to expand “egg occasions” through product innovation.
🔹 What’s Ahead: RSPCA & Industry Events
Upcoming discussion points and events include:
- RSPCA Welfare Standards Updates:1 July: RSPCA Member webinar on new laying hen standards.
8 July: RSPCA attending the West Country Layers Association meeting in Cullompton. - Poultry Network Live:Taking place on 4 September at Harper Adams University.
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Transcript
Intro
Introduction: Poultry Network Podcast Launch
00:00:15
Tom Willings
Hello and welcome back to another edition of the Poultry Network podcast. My name is Tom Willings and
00:00:21
Tom Woolman
Until the moment.
00:00:23
Tom Willings
It's a bit of a different episode this week, Tom, in in end of the week in late June, bit of a heat wave. um were We're both sat here sort of struggling struggling with the with the high temperatures, but we couldn't not record because it's been a week full of um pretty significant news. The
Industry Consolidation: End of Hook Two Sisters
00:00:41
Tom Willings
last sort 10 days have felt like you know some significant changes afoot in the in the poultry industry.
00:00:47
Tom Woolman
yeah Yeah, so so we've we very recently had the news that um thats Hook Two Sisters, the 50-50 joint venture between PD Hook and with Two Sisters, is is being sold to to the Bopar and Private Office, which is which is effectively yeah Two Sisters' owner, which means that Ranjit Singh will get control over...
00:01:12
Tom Woolman
um ah all of the all of the broiler supply chain. And he's also buying a significant proportion of the of the breeders and hatcheries estates as well, um leaving the Hooks with a um with ah with a ah business that's going to be smaller, um but continuing to focus on the independent market.
00:01:31
Tom Woolman
So,
History of Hook Two Sisters: A Strategic Partnership
00:01:31
Tom Woolman
um yeah, so I thought for those that don't know about Hook Two Sisters, I thought I might just give a little bit of a potted history of, um you know, how it formed. it if It formed in 2006,
00:01:43
Tom Woolman
ah really is a very simple and practical arrangement between Two Sisters and Peaty Hook. It gave Peaty Hook a yeah you know ah a market for for their chicks, a bit more of a guaranteed market for their chicks.
00:01:58
Tom Woolman
And it gave um Two Sisters a bit of guaranteed supply in terms of broilers coming into their plants. So both businesses were growing and have acquired quite a few businesses over the years.
00:02:10
Tom Woolman
um Two
2 Sisters' Growth: From 1993 to Present
00:02:10
Tom Woolman
Sisters only started in 1993. Peaty Hook was quite a few years before that. um but they both acquired Premier Poultry in 2000, Lloyd Maunder 2008, Vion in 2013 and usually with these these acquisitions Two Sisters would take over the running of the of the processing factories and Peely Hook would look after the the the the agricultural side of things um the farms, the hatcheries etc
00:02:41
Tom Woolman
um so um Two Sisters has always taken on new businesses. and they Obviously, they people can remember they've taken on various different businesses, Fox's Biscuits, Matthew Walker Christmas Puddings, ah pizzas, restaurants, all sorts of things.
00:02:58
Tom Willings
I was going to say, it's the quick serve restaurants i remember. I'm sure, did did they own Harry Ramsden's for a time or Giraffe or something like that?
00:03:04
Tom Woolman
certainly Well, certainly, yeah, certainly giraffe. Yes. Yeah. Some of those businesses um they've, yeah, they've they've sold on and and there was certainly a move to focus more on the core poultry business.
Expansion of Two Agriculture: New Mills Open
00:03:18
Tom Woolman
um So in recent times, um they acquired Bannam Poultry. but although This is the first example of where Bopar and ah family ran the entirety of of the Bannam business. Bannam is, ah you know, is an integrated business with feed and with, and with hatcheries, et cetera.
00:03:40
Tom Woolman
um So yes. and And of course, since the Vion acquisition, um there's been the the creation of Two Agriculture, which, which is a feed milling company providing feed.
00:03:47
Tom Willings
Thanks.
00:03:51
Tom Woolman
And that's been pretty successful um since, since it was started. um You know, the Boparans hadn't run feed mills before, but, um but, but, you know, they've made a, they've made a, a good go of that.
00:04:02
Tom Woolman
and And only recently they yeah um they've expanded further and acquired two further mills, Burston in in Norfolk and Radstock down in Somerset. um So really, up until this stage, it's been one of of of growth and one that's suited both companies.
00:04:20
Tom Woolman
um
Industry Challenges: Adapting to Structural Changes
00:04:22
Tom Woolman
But yeah, I think with obviously with some of the changes that are going on at the moment in terms of the industry, there's quite a few big Structural changes, the change in the stocking density um is a factor that's caused an awful lot of businesses to have to re-evaluate what they're doing.
00:04:36
Tom Woolman
um And so it's not necessarily unsurprising in in this this current environment that that the businesses are choosing a different strategy and to and to you know re-look at their structure.
00:04:50
Tom Woolman
um I guess and what I was going to say really is i don't think at the moment it's fair to speculate at all in terms of what's going on, what the future will look like, because there's there's an awful lot of people.
00:05:00
Tom Willings
you you've lived through one of these mergers, haven't you, or one of the changes like this and it's.
00:05:02
Tom Woolman
Yeah, there's an awful but there'll be an awful lot of people working for businesses that that are you know and wake up one day and find out that that their position is changing.
00:05:05
Tom Willings
Hmm. Hmm.
00:05:11
Tom Woolman
And so a lot of that detail will be getting worked out. um it can be an exciting time, you know, depending on where you are. Um, it
Emergence of New Agricultural Ventures in the UK
00:05:20
Tom Woolman
opens new doors, you know, we've effectively created a new, a new agricultural business in the, uh, in the, in the UK that doesn't happen very often, certainly not that scale.
00:05:30
Tom Woolman
Um, so yeah, so I think it'll be an interesting one to keep up, keep our eye on. And, um, but I think we need to let the dust settle, all ah for now. Um, but interestingly, it's, um,
00:05:41
Tom Woolman
I mean, it's not the only merger and acquisition that's that's going on at the moment, is it? there's There's been quite a bit of action in the egg sector as well, hasn't there, Tom?
00:05:49
Tom Willings
Yeah, well, absolutely. Absolutely. I think in truth, they possibly and pale by comparison to the scale of that in the meat sector.
00:06:00
Tom Willings
But um yeah, there've been several moves in the course of the last fortnight or so that have been announced. I think the first one chronologically that was announced was and Noble's acquisition of Just Egg.
Noble's Expansion in Cooked Products: Acquiring Just Egg
00:06:13
Tom Willings
Next one,
Dutch Influence: Hardeman Group's Acquisition of Bumblehole
00:06:14
Tom Willings
we've got Hardeman Group acquiring Bumblehole. um So that's a large Dutch integrated business um bringing their kind behemoth business model to UK shores and Bumblehole, one of the most established names in in UK processing with
00:06:25
Tom Woolman
yeah
00:06:34
Tom Woolman
yeah i know i know bumble hole from my breeder days certainly yeah
00:06:38
Tom Willings
been going for a very, very long period of time, great connections with with customers. And you know so much of the UK yeah egg egg industry have been you know focused on trying to promote British, British, British, beyond just fresh shell egg and in and in processing. And I think you know that's that's ah an enormously significant change in in the world of egg.
00:07:01
Tom Willings
um And then that was followed pretty quickly by the Griffiths family announcement of a joint venture with French business Urodin. um And, you know, this is all around um going beyond just fresh shell egg. And arguably, I'm sure for a lot ah lot of people,
00:07:20
Tom Willings
Egg industry guys in the UK, they'll be thinking um you know cost of production, competition, ah you know making a a defensive play with with customers. i I rather think I have a...
00:07:34
Tom Willings
and As much as I can see those those concerns, i think there's also there's got to be opportunity here because you you look at the markets that these um European businesses ah are driving and the consumption there is vastly in excess of what we
00:07:40
Tom Woolman
Hmm. Hmm.
00:07:51
Tom Willings
are
Boosting Egg Consumption: UK vs. Europe
00:07:51
Tom Willings
eating. you know that That for me is the handbrake. And ah we've got um are very, very little to show for all of the great work that the British Egg Industry Council and the the collection of egg industry um businesses have ah invested their time and money and in sort of trying to lift the limits as the BIC would do so to dispel the health myths to you know to talk about the the the nutritional benefits etc but you know we're kind of languishing in the bottom of the field when it comes to just how many eggs we eat comparison in comparison with our European neighbours
00:08:30
Tom Woolman
Well, it's interesting, I spend quite a bit of time traveling the country. um And so I'm always on the lookout for um food on the go that's this quick and convenient and healthy.
00:08:44
Tom Woolman
and um And I can see huge opportunities there in terms of eggs.
00:08:49
Tom Willings
Okay, i've got a great I've got a great little anecdote for you. I was in Holland last week, um last Friday, and um get got to the airport, desperate for something to eat, you know, I know two or three o'clock, my mood is pretty dark, let me tell you when I'm hungry.
00:09:03
Tom Willings
when i'm hungry I went into the nearest Albert Heijn and I grabbed a ah wrap. My Dutch is dreadful, but I knew the words on the front of the packet and they were pretty prominent. The only thing it said, smoked salmon.
00:09:15
Tom Willings
I won't attempt the Dutch accent, but it said smoked salmon. Didn't think of it that hungry. I hoovered it down halfway through the wrap. I realized that the wrap wasn't actually a wrap. It was omelet.
00:09:27
Tom Willings
It was egg-based. um And that the salmon inside the wrap wasn't alone. um it wasn't you know soft cheese or whatever else. It was egg mayonnaise. And I thought, this is where we're going wrong as an industry. you know We talk about growing meal occasions and and and ramping up all of the positive health benefits of eating egg. We just need to be doing it by stealth.
00:09:48
Tom Willings
Just feed people more eggs when they think they're buying salmon, when they think they're buying bread, feed them eggs. If we do that, we'll be all right, won't we?
00:09:55
Tom Woolman
So you're saying change change the language on the packaging, that's what you're saying.
00:09:58
Tom Willings
Well, I don't know. i don't I'm not sure what I'm saying other than there is ingenuity in these businesses. They have found ways to displace um you know other ingredients in everyday convenience food that that mean that we don't need the public to make wholesale shifts in their diet to to eat more eggs.
00:10:05
Tom Woolman
Yeah.
00:10:16
Tom Willings
We just need to find something that you know functionally an egg can match. And it's an incredibly versatile thing. and And we'll see our market grow accordingly. that That's mine.
00:10:28
Tom Willings
um That's my little soapbox anyway.
00:10:29
Tom Woolman
Yeah, so it's so exciting exciting times for ah but yeah for some of the some of the businesses involved in these mergers and acquisitions going forward.
00:10:30
Tom Willings
So I,
00:10:36
Tom Willings
I think so. I think so. So for for us, the call is we need to get some of these guys on with us and let's talk about them in in more detail. So,
Upcoming Events: RSPCA Webinars and Industry Conferences
00:10:44
Tom Willings
and you know, meat sector changes, egg egg sector changes.
00:10:48
Tom Willings
There's other moving parts as well. You know, the RSPCA ah rumbles on as a discussion point in the egg industry. We've we've got um we've got guys from the ah RSPCA joining us in in weeks ahead.
00:11:00
Tom Willings
We've talked a lot today about egg and and poultry meat.
00:11:00
Tom Woolman
That'll be good. Hmm.
00:11:02
Tom Willings
we've we've we've bet We haven't touched on turkey I realise that's poultry meat as well, but um a sector all of its own. We've got Paul Kelly ah coming up. there's There's no better advocate or energiser for our industry than Paul. So look forward to talking to him. So it's going to be an exciting few weeks ahead.
00:11:20
Tom Willings
A couple of dates for the diary, referencing RSPCA there. I think on the 1st of July, there's a webinar for there um their members, again, talking about their changes in their their laying hen standards And then I think a week later, the 8th of July, they're down at the West Country Layers Association um event, you know, face to face, meeting their audience, as it were.
00:11:46
Tom Willings
And then, of course, you and I...
00:11:46
Tom Woolman
That's in Columpton, isn't it?
00:11:48
Tom Willings
That's right. Yeah. um Yeah. The rugby club there at Columpton. um Yeah. 8th of July. And then not too far down the down the line, i guess you and i are going to be involved in the Poultry Network live conference at Harper Adams again.
00:12:02
Tom Willings
So, you know, maybe we'll record there.
00:12:03
Tom Woolman
I'm sure, yes Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, that'll be, that'll definitely be a date, a date for the diary, fourth of the fourth of September. i'm looking forward to that. Yeah, because it's nice.
00:12:13
Tom Willings
Yeah.
00:12:13
Tom Woolman
It's particularly nice to have events where the egg sector and the meat sector come together and can discuss common ground and common themes. Yeah.
00:12:20
Tom Willings
Yeah, for sure. For sure. Good.
00:12:22
Tom Woolman
Yeah. Good. Nice to chat to you, Tom.
00:12:23
Tom Willings
Right. Likewise, until next week um and everybody else, thank you for listening.
00:12:29
Tom Woolman
Yeah, thank you.