After heavy acquisitions, Evialis invests to increase offer
Valor Econômico - 07/01/2008
French group Evialis, which concluded the purchase of the operations of Cargill in the Brazilian market of animal nutrition in May, now aims at the consolidation of its leading position in this segment in the country. The company will invest R$ 42 million (US$ 26.3 million) in the next years in order to adjust the production of its plants as well as for the launching of new products. The first R$ 2 million (US$ 1.3 million) will be disbursed within six months, according to Evialis' CEO, Nilton Ribera Perez. Those funds will be invested in six of the nine plants which the group started operating after the series of acquisitions. The other R$ 40 million (US$ 25 million) will be disbursed in the mid-run. Currently, no new purchases of rivals are foreseen, according to the officer. When it purchased the four remaining units of the Cargill Nutrição Animal in Brazil, a branch of the American multinational for the segment, Evialis became the owner of nine plants. Besides selling the units of Paulínia (SP), Inhumas (GO), São Lourenço da Mata (PE) and Canoas (RS), Cargill negotiated with M. Cassab, in December,2007, the plant located in Cascavel (PR). The following month, it sold the unit of Barra Mansa (RJ) to Socil, which belongs to Evialis itself. With the operations, Cargill left the animal feed market in Brazil. With the greater geographic amplitude of its plants, the company increases its sales scale, evaluates Perez. With margins considered tight, the sector of animal nutrition ends up by demanding plants near the consuming market. The cost of transport would end up making impracticable the businesses Evialis may now close with the units bought from Cargill. Not only did the acquisitions provide Evialis the physical presence in States where it previously had no plant, but in some cases the French group also started operating in areas it didn't until then. Evialis will also make use of the acquisitions as a tool to become more known in Brazil. The name of the company will start being associated to the names of the brands it works with.