Introduction

It’s very likely that at some point in your life you’ll have eaten a product created by Baiada Poultry. Established by the Baiada family in the early 1940s, Baiada Poultry is a privately-owned Australian company which provides quality poultry products.

In July 2009 Baiada acquired Bartter Steggles. This established Baiada’s position as market leader in poultry production. Overnight Baiada’s staff count increased to over 4,000 employees, along with an increase in the number of farming and operational sites across the country. It was inevitable that an acquisition of this size would have a major impact on the total Australian poultry industry.

Combining two of Australia’s major poultry producers into one company was no easy feat. The merging of the two companies resulted in Baiada near next to doubling its operational facilities, consumer brands and product range. A successful business has clear, identifiable goals, an easily-recognised brand, and a defined product range, rather than one that contains products that compete for market share. Baiada’s first step was to implement a rationalisation program. This involved closing seven sites, withdrawing the beef, pork and lamb products which Bartter Steggles had in previous years persified into, and removing product duplication. The underlying belief was to focus on the business core competency – which is to produce the best of Australian poultry.

Ownership of the Steggles brand was an important part of the acquisition, with the brand commanding 90 percent brand awareness, compared to Baiada’s nine percent. The decision was made to phase out the Baiada brand and concentrate on further strengthening the Steggles brand. This decision improved operational efficiencies, which in turn increased cost efficiencies, whilst creating a renewed focus within the business.