Daybreak Foods: Chicken producer hopes business rescue will hatch a turnaround
Creditors and almost 3,000 employees may finally see some resolution as the first business rescue meetings for beleaguered chicken producer, Daybreak Foods, kick off next week.
Daybreak Foods, which has been in the spotlight over the past two months for animal cruelty, mismanagement, failure to pay staff and failure to pay contractors, has successfully applied to be placed under business rescue.
Under the Companies Act, business rescue practitioner Tebogo Maoto is required to convene the first meeting of creditors and employees within 10 days of his appointment.
The first meeting of creditors will be held virtually through Microsoft Teams on Monday, 2 June at 10am. The first meeting of employees will also take place virtually through Microsoft Teams on Tuesday, 3 June at 10am. In a notice, Maoto said the formal agenda for the meetings would be communicated to all affected parties in due course. In the interim, affected parties may address any queries they have directly to Motau at [email protected]
In a media statement, the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), a major creditor and shareholder in Daybreak Foods, said it was of the 'firm belief that the company can be rescued and must be rescued, and that business rescue is the best path to preserve the company's value and potential, saving approximately 3,000 jobs, and importantly, to realise returns for clients and their beneficiaries on their investment'.
Maoto was formally appointed as the senior business rescue practitioner (BRP) of Daybreak Foods on Thursday, 22 May 2025, after the company was placed under voluntary business rescue two days earlier. Maoto has significant experience in the field of business rescue, turnarounds and corporate restructurings, both in South Africa and in cross-border mandates. This extends to the turnaround and restructuring of various non-listed companies, including York Timber, Adax Bioenergy (Sierra Leone), Karstern Boerdery and Premier Hotel OR Tambo.
A statement from the company notes that the business rescue proceedings for Daybreak Foods will focus on stabilising its ongoing operations, while Maoto assists with the development of a turnaround strategy and finding solutions to the funding shortfalls of Daybreak Foods.
The PIC has already undertaken several measures to contribute towards stabilising Daybreak Foods, which include the injection of R74-million in working capital, intended to address the company's immediate liquidity needs.
Daybreak Foods' interim chairperson Dr Charlotte Nkuna commented: 'We welcome the appointment of the BRP as part of the collective effort, together with the Public Investment Corporation, to rescue the Company and save approximately 2,800 jobs. We are confident that the business rescue proceedings will help Daybreak Foods to achieve a credible turnaround plan in the interest of all our stakeholders.'
Daybreak Foods has a legal moratorium on any legal and/or enforcement actions being instituted against it, while the company's board and the BRP prepare the necessary proposals to rescue the company from its financial distress. DM
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