09/22/2008 09h12
Confident, Ouro Fino bets on market expansion
Gazeta Mercantil - 09/22/2008
As a part of the expansion plan that will absorb investments of R$ 270 million (US$ 165.6 million) in three years, Ouro Fino has just created the Ouro Fino Agronegócios brand, which starts gathering the five units of business in operation and two more that will start operating from 2009 on. "Our intention is to be among the ten biggest producers of inputs for the national agribusiness in five years' time", said Jardel Massari, the company's president. The five units of business that exists, all of them independent companies - Saúde Animal (veterinary products), Agrosciences (seeds), Bem Estar Animal (PET), Genética Animal (genetic improvement) and Animal Health (for export) - will be joined by two others: Ouro Fino Agrícola (chemical pesticides and herbicides) and Ouro Fino Biológicos (vaccines). The world economic crisis seems not to have affected the company's plans of investments. Created 21 years ago, Ouro Fino will invest R$ 270 million (US$ 165.6 million) until 2010. The funds are guaranteed by the BNDES Participações, which became a partner of the company last year, purchasing 20% of its capital. Most of the investment, R$ 200 million (US$ 122.7 million), will be towards a plant in Uberaba (MG) that will produce crop protection products (herbicide, pesticide, fungicide, acaricide, and so on) for the main Brazilian cultures, such as soybeans, corn, sugar cane, coffee and citrus, among others. Another R$ 50 million (US$ 30.7 million) will be invested in the construction of a vaccine plant, which will start production in 2009, first with a vaccine against foot and mouth disease. The remaining R$ 20 million (US$ 12.3 million) will go to a unit of stud hormones production for bovines, which regulate the animal rut for increase of productivity. Both plants will be installed in the industrial complex of Ouro Fino in Cravinhos, municipality close to Ribeirão Preto (SP). With an area of 45 thousand square meters, built in a land of 125 thousand square meters, the complex already has five plants: injectables; creams and pomades; oral products; soluble powders for agribusiness; and tablets. It absorbed investments of R$ 350 million (US$ 214.7 million) and was built following the main national and international standards. The investments, according to Massari, face the great expansion that Ouro Fino has had in the last years. "On the average, we have grown 25% per year in the last ten years", said the president of Ouro Fino. "Meanwhile, the veterinary products market grew 5% in 2007 and 7% in 2006", compares Massari. He says that this year's sale should leap to R$ 200 million (US$ 135 million), in comparison to 2007's R$ 176 million (US$ 91.2 million).
