Brazilian meat company BRF will launch a discount brand of meat called Kidelli, less than ten months after being embroiled in a food corruption scandal.
BRF’s general manager for Brazil, Alexandre Almeida, told reporters during a conference call that the brand would be available mainly through Brazilian cash-and-carry outlets.
The discount brand will be targeted at a growing number of ‘cost-conscious’ consumers, who account for around 30% of Brazil’s processed food market. The range will cover a total of 14 new products, Almeida said.
The head of BRF’s Brazilian business was only appointed in July as part of major restructuring following the fallout from the country’s carne fraca scandal.
Along with JBS and smaller meat company Grupo Peccin, BRF was accused of paying health officials to overlook contaminated and potentially rotten shipments of meat.
The owners of JBS, the world’s largest meat-packer, were forced to pay out a record $3.2 billion fine and subsequently outlined a $1.8 billion disinvestment plan that included the sale of its Moy Park brand. In September Moy Park was bought by Pilgrim’s Pride, in which JBS is a majority shareholder.
But amid fears that the affair would seriously damage the long-term image of Brazil’s meat industry, BRF showed signs of rapid recovery during its second quarter of the financial year and even recorded a 13.7% increase in pre-tax earnings.
It led to reports in August that BRF was readying a discount brand – now known to be Kidelli – after Brazil’s anti-trust authority lifted restrictions dating back to the merger between meat processors Perdigão and Sadia.
Brazil’s Administrative Council for Economic Defense (Cade) ordered the company to suspend its activity in some product categories for up to five years following the deal. Packaged and processed foods including pizzas, lasagne, meatballs and sandwich products were among those to receive the heaviest restrictions, with BRF not allowed to launch replacement brands for the entirety of the suspension.
The last of the restrictions expired in July, paving the way for BRF to compete in the categories in Brazil again.
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