Kerry Group
Kerry Group plc is a public food company headquartered in Ireland. It is quoted on the Dublin ISEQ and London stock exchanges. History. Kerry was founded in 1972 in Listowel, County Kerry as a private company with three shareholders – state-owned Dairy Disposal Company (42.5%), a federation of eight small farmer co-operatives in Kerry which become Kerry Co-op (42.5%) and Erie Casein Company Inc. from the US (15%). In 1986, a significant milestone in the formation of the plc involved the Group acquiring the undertaking, property and assets of Kerry Co-operative Creameries and as a  consideration 90 million ordinary shares in Kerry Group plc being issued to the Co-op. In March 2004, the company bought the Quest Food Ingredients Group, a food ingredients business, for US$440 million. Then in August 2005, the company acquired Noon Products, a supplier of Indian and Thai ready meals, for £124m. In September 2012, the company acquired Cargill Flavor Systems, a manufacturer of food flavouring, for $230 million. In February 2015 the company acquired Rollover, a supplier of hot dogs. Then in October 2015 the company acquired Red Arrow Products, Island Oasis and Wellmune, three  businesses in the US taste and nutrition sector, for US$735 million. In June 2021 Pilgrim's Pride agreed to buy Kerry Group's consumer foods meat and meals business. Operations. Headquartered in Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland, the Group employs over 26,000 people in its manufacturing, sales and technical centres worldwide. Kerry's global headquarters is in Naas, County Kildare at the groups' €100 million Global Technology and Innovation Centre which employs 900 people. Kerry supplies over 18,000 foods, food ingredients and flavour products to customers in more than 140 countries worldwide. Kerry is a member of the European  Flavour Association. Business structure. The Group is divided into several business areas: ingredients and flavours, consumer foods and agribusiness. Notable brands. Brands include: Rankings. In 2021, Kerry was on the list of Industry Outlook's Top 10 Food Additive Manufacturers, in addition to being ranked second on the Top 20 Global Food Preservative Companies list by FoodTalks, a Chinese food media platform.