Agrexco, Israel's primary exporter of fresh produce, is reported to be planning on issuing NIS120 million (£15.16m) of private stocks to institutions; the first move towards privatisation of the company according to trade sources talking to FPJ’s Israeli correspondent.
However, Yaakov (malchy) Malinovitch, Agrexco deputy managing director and head of its marketing division, said the stock offering "is an additional means to finance the activities of the company". He added that there are no plans at the moment to privatise the company.
Agrexco is owned by the government (50 per cent), Tnuva (25 per cent), The Plants Production and Marketing Board (18.75 per cent) and the Poultry Board (6.25 per cent). The company exports, markets, and distributes fresh produce supplied by 2,200 farmers to 2,500 clients in more than 80 countries worldwide. It handles more than 400,000 tonnes of fresh produce a year sent by sea or air - more than 60 per cent of Israel's total production of fresh produce.
According to Agrexco’s by-laws, any profits are to be diverted to increase the payments to the growers. In 2005 the by-laws were changed to enable the company to achieve a profit of NIS10m (£1.3m) a year. During the first six months of 2007 the company registered profits of NIS18m (£2.3m) from revenues totaling NIS2.2 billion (£280m).
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