Doux poultry group will cede majority stake to Barclays

The French group Doux, Europe's top producer of poultry and processed chicken, will accept to sell its majority stake to Barclays Bank in a bid to keep the company afloat, the CGT union said Wednesday. Speaking ahead of a key meeting with staff Thursday, Raymond Gouiffes, union representative at the CGT, said: "Barclays will take 80 percent of capital and Doux 20 percent." Doux currently owns 80 percent of the company and BNP Paribas bank 20 percent. Doux was put into administration in June after it failed to reach a deal with creditors. Barclays had laid the responsibility for the move with boss Charles Doux who reportedly rejected a proposal that would have provided millions of euros in aid for the company. He then refused to give up his majority stake. By accepting the deal with Barclays, Doux was "backtracking back to the starting point", said Gouiffes. The world's fifth-largest poultry exporter, with clients in 130 countries, Doux fell victim to a rise in farm input prices and increased competition that squeezed already thin profit margins and rendered massive debts unsustainable. Doux employs 10,000 people globally including 3,400 in France.