The management of one of Jamaica’s leading meat processors, Arosa Limited, has changed hands following Derrimon Trading’s acquisition of the company. 

The acquisition, made official during a recent signing at the Derrimon Trading head office on Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston between the key stakeholders of both companies, will have Derrimon Trading acquiring full ownership of the manufacturing and meat processing company.

“Today Derrimon Trading is taking over the baton from Robert, he will still be with the company for many more years, teaching us the business,” stated Derrick Cotterell, group CEO and chairman of Derrimon Trading Company Limited.

ONE OF JAMAICA’S MOST WELL-KNOWN PROCESSORS OF HIGH QUALITY MEATS

With locations in the rapidly developing Drax Hall, St Ann, and in Kingston, Arosa is one of Jamaica’s most well-known processors of the highest quality meats, with a wide variety of products including ham, bacon, smoked marlin and also boasts the largest variety of sausages which are widely consumed.

In the business for over 36 years, Arosa is also celebrated as a purveyor of fine wines, cheeses and breads servicing hospitality, catering and retail trade.

“We started as a meat processing business making sausages, cuts of other products like pork and beef and lamb and we also bring imported cheeses from out of Europe, wine from Central America, and also have products out of Switzerland and glassware and we are the distributors of Elite coffee and espresso out of Italy,” said Robert Hoehener, founder and key principal at Arosa Ltd. 

Ian Kelly, group chief financial officer at Derrimon, said this latest acquisition was a part of Derrimon’s long-term strategy for diversification and growth in the distribution and manufacturing space.

“We have certainly been making in-roads within the manufacturing space and believe that the acquisition of Arosa will also help us to deepen our market and increase our revenue from that source that we believe will add additional value to us,” Kelly said.

Derrimon intends to invest significant capital to boost the production capacity of Arosa’s current plant and expand the brand across Jamaica and future export markets. 

“Certainly, this acquisition will help to further diversify and provide growth to the DTL Group’s revenue stream and thereafter we look at the marketing efforts to see whether after being able to supply the local markets that we will further serve other markets within the Caribbean,” Kelly added.

MOVE TO CONTINUE WIDENING DERRIMON’S MANUFACTURING BASE

The move will continue to widen Derrimon’s manufacturing base, cementing the company’s ability to supply the best quality products to consumers while contributing to nation building. 

“This is a particularly happy occasion, because we are going to be employing more people, growing the business and creating value, not just for our shareholders but for employees and to the society at-large,” Cotterell said.

The acquisition will see former commercial manager at Derrimon Trading, Stewart Jacobs, being appointed general manager at the St Ann-based company.

All current Arosa staff members will remain employed and the expansion of the company will require a further increase in staff in the near future.

 As existing principals, Robert Hoehener and Herma Grant, will remain as part of the team and will play a critical role in the business going forward.

“I’m very pleased that I have found a company, a serious company who is also on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, to sell my company which I have been head of for 36 years,” Hoehener said.

“I have reached not quite the end of my life, but I have been for many, many years, in this business and it is about time to take a step back and hand it over to somebody who I feel will be very competent and who I feel will make a good success out of it by enlarging it and expanding it and I thank Derrimon for that,” he added.