Golden fleece: The largest group of sheep meat in Patagonia, whose owners are 64 producers from that region, acquired a

In a strategic move aimed at strengthening the sheep farming sector across the entire Patagonian region, the largest producer of lamb meat, Estancias De Patagonia SA, has formalized the purchase of Fuhrmann, one of the main wool exporters located in Trelew, in the neighboring province of Chubut. The entry of Estancias de la Patagonia SA into the business of processing and exporting wool, rather than as a traditional merger and purchase, should be seen as a strategy by the sheep farmers of Patagonia to integrate their different businesses and grow vertically in the chain. In fact, there are 64 producer shareholders of the meatpacking group who will now also be the owners of one of the largest wool mills in the region, whereas before they were simply wool suppliers. Indeed, Estancias de Patagonia SA was born in the late 1990s as a survival strategy for the producers in the southernmost areas of the country in the face of the sheep crisis of that time. The company grew and became one ...