The Beillevaire family business and the Agrial Co-operative have announced that they have entered discussions concerning the proposed sale of the Vinay cheese factory.

The Vinay cheese dairy specialises in the production of Saint-Marcellin (IGP), St-Félicien and Brousse cow’s milk cheeses, producing around 850 tonnes of cheese each year. The cheese dairy is recognised for the quality of its products, which regularly win awards in many competitions.

In a highly competitive PDO and PGI cow’s cheese sector in which Agrial does not have the necessary critical size, a sale project is being discussed with the Beillevaire Group to ensure the long-termism and development of the Vinay cheese factory.

The Beillevaire Group is a family business that has been growing strongly for several years and has more than 500 employees spread over 10 sites dedicated to the production and maturing of cheeses. It also has 70 sales points throughout France as well as diversified distribution networks in France and abroad, allowing for a strong promotion of local, top-of-the-range and PDO cheeses.

For Pascal Beillevaire, founder, and chairman of the company, “this acquisition would allow us to continue our growth by strengthening our production tools, in particularly by internalising the production of Saint-Marcellin and Saint-Félicien, which we did not have until now. The Vinay cheese dairy corresponds in every respect to the values that have made our family business successful: quality, expertise and the PDO.”

The sale should take place in September 2023 and all the employees of the Vinay cheese factory would be transferred to the Beillevaire company. All jobs would be preserved. In addition, the twenty or so milk producers supplying the site will continue to be collected.