It’s the end of an era. In the North, the Belgian agri-food company Agristo bought, on Monday, from the Tereos group its Escaudoeuvres sugar factory, closed in March. The company, which employs 1,200 people in Belgium and the Netherlands, plans to open a potato processing plant there in 2027, ultimately providing some 350 jobs.
“It’s a victory tinged with bitterness, but we have to look to the future,” said Minister Delegate for Industry, Roland Lescure, when signing the agreement on the site, which employed 123 people.
record profit
Agristo has indicated that it plans to invest 350 million euros to build a new factory and produce fries, röstis and other frozen patties there by the second half of 2027. Tereos, owner of the Béghin-Say and La Perruche brands, must take charge of dismantling the sugar refinery, which is nearly 150 years old.
He plans to process 500,000 tonnes of potatoes per year in Escaudoeuvres, supplied by “200 to 250 farmers, all located less than 150 km from the factory”. Its managing director Kritof Wallay notably highlighted the site’s good logistical connections. The State will “continue to support” the implementation of this project, according to the ministry.
Second sugar group in the world – behind the German Südzucker – Tereos announced in early March the closure of this sugar refinery, as well as of its distillery in Morains, in the Marne, as part of an “industrial reorganization”. In June, Tereos announced that it had turned the page on an “unprecedented crisis” and achieved “record” operating profit for the 2022-2023 financial year, boosted by sugar prices.