Other closures at Olymel? | The Press

Other Olymel plants could cease their activities. The reduction in the number of pig slaughters announced by the company recently and the financial losses it has suffered in the fresh pork sector are likely to lead to further closures.

“It is certain that there will be a consolidation of slaughterings in fewer sites or a reorganization of work shifts”, affirmed the president and general manager of Olymel, Yanick Gervais, during a telephone interview in margin of the annual general meeting of Sollio Cooperative Group. BMR, Olymel and Sollio Agriculture are divisions of the cooperative, which announced its 2022 financial results on Thursday at its annual general meeting.

“Without confirming a scenario, we must review operations,” replied Mr. Gervais regarding a possible plant closure. We don’t have the same needs at 81,000 pigs slaughtered per week as at 130,000.” Olymel intends to reduce its slaughtering by 20%.

“In the field of fresh pork, with the latest announcements we have made, we must review our operational model, certainly, he added. There is nothing to announce today, however, we are still in reflection mode on it. »

In the fresh pork sector, Olymel claims to have lost $390 million over the past two years. On Thursday, the company announced pre-tax losses of 445.7 million for 2022, compared to 71.8 million for 2021.

“Labour shortages in the slaughterhouses in this sector and the partial shutdown of the Chinese market for most of the year are two factors that have prevented the company from achieving the expected margins, may -we read in the annual report. The costs of external slaughter for hogs on hold and the obligation to favor primal cuts rather than added values ​​due to a lack of labor also weighed on the sector’s results. »

Then, recently, the company announced the closure of its pork further processing plants in Laval and Blainville. The Saint-Hyacinthe plant will also cease operations.

Regarding the nature of the relationship between Olymel and the Quebec Pork Breeders, who are currently in conciliation to reach an agreement on prices, Mr. Gervais describes them as “cordial”.

“I wouldn’t say tense. I understand the level of emotion on each side and the impact this can have for farmers in Quebec. We are 100% open to discussion. We are available. We continue to work with the mediator. The uncertainty hanging over the pork industry in Quebec is not good for anyone. »

Good news for consumers

While Olymel records losses, BMR saves the furniture. The hardware store has a record pre-tax surplus of 53.8 million for 2022, compared to 28.2 million in 2021. Good news for consumers who will no doubt take to hardware stores in the spring: the prices of many revenues, after having increased, are on the decline, confirms Alexandre Lefebvre, Executive Vice-President and Chief Executive Officer of BMR.

“There has already been an extremely marked drop in the prices of forest products: everything that is lumber, panels,” he illustrates.

Seasonal products arriving in containers from Asia such as barbecues and sets of outdoor chairs and tables will also be attractively priced to consumers. “Container prices had risen to more than $5,000 and then we fell back to $3,000. So that too creates deflation. »

“Disappointing” results for Sollio

For its part, Sollio Cooperative Group is back in the same film. After describing 2021 as the most “tumultuous” year in its history, the cooperative announced “disappointing” financial results for 2022, as CEO Pascal Houle himself admitted, with sales of 8.9 billion, but a loss before taxes and rebates of 337.5 million.

This figure notably includes the loss related to the abandonment of grain exports. By comparison, last year, the losses of the former Coop fédérée amounted to $21.5 million.

“Indeed, the results are not up to our expectations,” admitted Pascal Houle in an interview.