Vion to shut German meat plant after regulators block its sale

GERMANY – Vion Food Group has confirmed it will permanently close its deboning plant in Hilden, Germany, after regulators prevented the sale of the site, bringing another chapter of the company’s German withdrawal to a close.

The company said the shutdown will affect 160 employees and that production activities at the facility are expected to be phased out by the end of February.

Vion explained that the closure demonstrates longer-term shifts in the meat market that are forcing companies to reduce capacity and streamline operations to remain viable.

As part of the process, Vion said it will enter consultations with the works council to agree on a social plan and measures to balance interests, while also examining whether any affected staff can be offered alternative roles within the group.

The Hilden facility had been included in a wider deal under which Premium Food Group, formerly operating as the Tönnies Group, planned to acquire several Vion assets in Germany.

Alongside Hilden, the proposed transaction covered slaughterhouses located in Buchloe, Crailsheim, and Waldkraiburg, all part of Vion’s effort to exit the German meat market.

However, in June, Germany’s competition watchdog, the Bundeskartellamt, blocked the deal, arguing that it would weaken competition and put farmers and smaller processors at a disadvantage.

Premium Food Group initially said it would challenge the ruling in court, but later floated an alternative approach in which rival processor Westfleisch could step in as a potential buyer.

Responding at the time, Westfleisch said it welcomed any move that could break the deadlock around restructuring slaughter capacity in southern Germany, while stressing it had not yet reviewed the relevant documents.

Vion separately stated that discussions with Premium Food Group had focused on opening the door for other interested parties to engage with Vion after the original transaction was prohibited.

The company added that several potential buyers had already made contact and that it would assess all credible offers to determine a solution that best serves its operations, employees, and regional partners.

The closure of the Hilden plant fits into a broader restructuring strategy that began in 2023, when Vion started winding down meat operations in Germany.

The company later announced plans to fully exit the market, citing persistent pressure from rising costs, tighter regulation, and structural overcapacity.

In 2024, the then Tönnies Group agreed to acquire Vion’s cattle slaughterhouse and pre-packed meat facility in Altenburg, located in the Thuringia region, along with the Ahlener Fleischhandel ham processing site in Westphalia.

That transaction did not prevent further cutbacks, as Premium Food Group said in May that it would close the ham production site, underlining the scale of change underway in Germany’s meat sector.

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