Entrepreneur Ranjit Singh Boparan is stepping down as chief executive of 2 Sisters Food Group, after 25 years at the helm.
The announcement comes after a challenging year for the company and its owner, known colloquially as the 'Chicken King', who will now take up the position of President of Boparan Holdings Limited (BHL), the parent company of 2 Sisters Food Group.
Last October, 2 Sisters suspended operations at its West Bromwich poultry plant after an investigation by The Guardian and news organisation ITV raised allegations in relation to food safety and hygiene.
Meanwhile, earlier this month, the group announced plans to close three of its production facilities across the UK, resulting the potential loss of 900 jobs.
Boparan Holdings Limited reported a 57.6% decrease in operating profit in December.
Leadership Changes
2 Sisters says that a process has been put in place to find a new CEO for the group, looking at both internal and external candidates.
Chief operating officer Martyn Fletcher will be responsible for the business until a formal appointment has been made.
Boparan, meanwhile, says that he wants to take "a broader industry leadership role" and concentrate on wider issues affecting the food sector.
“These changes are the right ones to make at a very important stage in our business’s history and they help secure strong foundations for future development and growth," said Boparan.
"These are further major transformative steps in a journey to build a better business with a world-class leadership team.”
2 Sisters appears to be in the midst of a business development. Last month, the group announced that it was selling its Goodfellas Pizza business to Nomad Foods for around £200 million, while earlier this week it was reported that the company could also be looking to sell its Donegal Catch frozen fish business.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
