Every day about 1,700 pigs weighing 220 to 240 kilos and in what is a very careful journey arrive by caged trucks at a succession of six floors on the Paraná River at Villa Gobernador Gálvez, a few kilometers from Rosario. welcome to 43,000 m2 by Paladini which respects the classic concept of Antoine Lavoisier: nothing is lost, everything is transformed.
Due to the new regulations on animal welfare, the pigs are put to sleep and then transformed into salami, mortadella, hams, hamburgers and even their bones, so rich in calcium, are used for various medicines. They have potable water and waste treatment facilities. In that industry, with state-of-the-art Danish equipment, the first thing that catches the eye is the large laboratory and test room where they test combinations for a company whose motto is innovation.
Paladins it is vertically integrated and with 12,000 mothers in their kennels in Santa Fe and San Luis, it’s the main producer of pigs in the country. It is also the largest food company in Santa Fe, number one in refrigerated products in Argentina and has the second largest cold chain after La Serenísima.
The Paladini family arrived from Lucca, Italy in the early 1900s, but the story begins when Juan, born in Argentina, began producing sausages for relatives and friends and in 1923 the first factory was inaugurated. Juan had four children and died young, at age 42. The business was left in the hands of his grandmother María Davalle.
The big leap comes in the 60s with the expansion of the plant, a decision carried out by Roberto Paladini, the youngest of the brothers, who died in 2020 and father of Pablo who represents the third generation supported by professional management such as Gustavo Bonvechi. , the managing director and Marcelo Diaz its commercial director. In 2011 Paladini decided to convert from a refrigerator company to a food company. “Let’s juggle”, says Pablo Paladini when asked what he does in the face of inflation.
They seem countercultural. They agreed to invest $4 billion in new production lines for a product offer that satisfies all segments. Recipe?Lower costs, technology and risk to frozen ones, Milanese soy, special cheeses, pasta, ready meals and vegetables for the top of the social pyramid. And they’ve launched deli meats, sausages, battered chicken, and pork-and-soy burgers for those who can’t make ends meet.
they overturned more in retail than in supermarkets, which “are trampled on by paymentsand now account for 13% of their sales. Therefore, they try to defend themselves against a Reduction of consumption by 2%.
“We keep the volume but it costs us more and more”, says Marcello Diaz. Paladini holds 23% of the food business. A fact of what is happening at the base of the pyramid is that they have a record production of sausages 2 million six packs a day. “We could make more of it, the sausage It is the main meal in many homes”wide Diaz.
They note what the middle class is it went from ham to palette and today 85% of its sales are cured meats, cheeses and sausages. They have 2,200 employees.
Pablo Paladini states that he is a family business which, although it does not have a lender of last resort like the multis or can access credit at international rates, “has the support of shareholders who are just a phone call away, which gives us flexibility. We are one hundred years old.”
-Are you exporting?
-The exchange rate gap and inflation discourage it. We were shipping 11 containers to China and 20 to Russia every month before the pandemic. Now something in Paraguay and three containers every three months in China. They recognize us a dollar of 220 dollars. It’s at a loss.
– Are they affected by importers’ stocks?
-We import some critical inputs and have no access to dollars. But this is the only company of its size with the surname of its owners. And we are compliant. Our overseas suppliers understand the situation and help us.
-What are your expectations for 2024?
-The company is debt-free and solid in an environment of high volatility, therefore prudence prevails in our decisions.
Source: Clarin
