Avara Foods has been unveiled as the joint venture between Cargill’s fresh chicken business in the UK and Faccenda’s fresh chicken, turkey and duck business.

The new joint venture follows Competition and Market Authority (CMA) approval in December and will be a 50/50 shared ownership between Cargill and Faccenda.

Avara Foods will bring together 6,000 people in a fully integrated supply chain focused on delivering “high quality fresh food to UK customers”.

The joint venture was cleared by CMA in December and by the European Commission in November last year.

Andy Dawkins, CEO of the new company, commented: “This is an exciting day. Launching Avara Foods brings together two successful businesses with high standards, shared values and strong reputations for building sustainable partnerships with customers, growers and suppliers.

“Now the opportunity is to take the best from both and provide our customers with great service and innovation from a trusted leader in fresh foods.”

He added that the company’s “first step is to make sure that there is a smooth transition as we bring together the two businesses as Avara Foods, and establish a solid platform for growth”.