Laurence Goodman (born 15 September 1937) is an Irish businessman, chiefly involved in the beef processing industry. He is the 6th generation of a livestock and meat exporting family and founded what is now ABP Food Group in 1954. He is the Executive Chairman of the company[1] which has grown to become one of Europe’s largest agri-business companies with 51 processing plants in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Denmark, Netherlands, Austria, Poland. ABP employs over 11,000 people. Separately, the Goodman family office has business interests in property, healthcare and productive arable and beef farming.
His companies attracted controversy during the 1991 Beef Tribunal, while a burger manufacturing facility, Silvercrest, was one of a number of high profile food manufacturing facilities which were involved in the 2013 European horse meat scandal.[2] An investigation by the Irish Government into the issue concluded that the company had never knowingly purchased meat containing equine DNA.[3]
Personal life
Goodman was born in County Louth. He attended St Mary's College, Dundalk,[4] but left school without finishing his Intermediate Certificate, and followed his father into the meat industry, starting with meat by-products and sheep. He was "born to a well-off family who had been in the meat business for six generations".[5] He lives with his wife Kitty at Castlebellingham, County Louth. His brother Peter Goodman worked as deputy chairman of Goodman International and his other brother Michael was a farmer in County Louth. They are no longer talking to one another.[6]
Business life
In the late 1960s Goodman bought Anglo-Irish Meats in Dundalk, which put him into the processing industry in a substantial way. He then began exporting, building up contacts in the Middle East in particular. He sold meat to Libya, Iran, Iraq and Egypt – often going himself as salesman.[7] He was on the advisory committee for HSBC's opening of operations in Ireland in 1979, along with Dermot Nolan, Michael Carvill and Peter Hutson.[8] In April 1980 Anglo Irish Meat Group purchased a meat plant at Bagenalstown, County Carlow from Meade-Lonsdale for around £2.2m.[9]
In June 1980 it was announced that Goodman would invest £10m for a new meat plant in Ardee, County Louth, employing 360 people "when it reaches full production". It also announced an additional £10m investment to expand operations at Cahir, Nenagh and Bagenalstown.[10] In October 1980, Goodman bought Fermanagh Meats in Enniskillen for about £1.5m. The plant employed 60 people and processed about 1,000 head of cattle a week. By this time Goodman's meat empire was turning over about £100m a year.[11]
In July 1981 it was announced that the IDA would put £2m towards the £9m expansion of Goodman's plants. One of his companies, Irish Agricultural Feed Co also built a feed manufacturing facility at Castlebellingham, and a complex to "over-winter up to 15,000 cattle to boost supplies to the factories at a time when few cattle are finished for slaughter". The complex "was the result of 14 years research" and cost £2m. By this time Anglo Irish Group employed some 700 people and turnover had reached £120m per year.[12]
In January 1982 it was announced that Anglo Irish Beef Group had won a £25.5m contract to supply beef to Iraq. The contract involved supplying 9,000 tonnes of boneless consumer cuts and frozen bone-in meat and was part of an overall order for 54,000 tonnes of beef placed by Iraq.[13]
In March 1983, AIBG acquired the four Northern Ireland factories of the animal by-products processors Robert Wilson for around £1m. By this stage AIBP was slaughtering more than 250,000 cattle a year, and 10,000 cattle were being fattened at Goodman's feeding lots in Louth.[14] Later that year, in April 1983, he won contracts to supply $50m worth of fresh frozen beef to Iran and Morocco. At the time of the deal, Goodman complained that because there was no Variable Premium subsidy scheme in the UK, exporters there had an effective subsidy of $300 a tonne on beef exporters, thus enabling them to undercut Irish exporters. In September 1983 Goodman won a $33m contract to supply beef to Iran. Goodman praised then Minister for Agriculture Austin Deasy, whose visit to Tehran "greatly facilitated the securing of the new contract".[15]
In December 1984 AIBP purchased the entire fresh meat division of Dalgety PLC, a publicly quoted UK group. It included facilities in York, Blisworth, Wellingborough and Reading, as well as distribution depots in Jersey and Berkshire. By this time turnover at Goodman had reached £300m a year.[16] The purchased was followed by the acquisition of the Waterford plant of Clover Meats (after that company's collapse) for around £2m in February 1985. It includes the purchase of National Proteins, a by-products plant processing meat and bone meal from edible offal.[17]
Desmond and Mac Giolla allegations
On 9 March 1989 TDs Barry Desmond and Tomás Mac Giolla made a series of allegations about Goodman International in the Dáil.[18] It emerged that the Minister of Agriculture had met Goodman on 19 October 1988 and Goodman had expressed interest in Irish Sugar – however in a parliamentary question submitted by Des O'Malley just a month later O'Kennedy denied any "discussions or negotiations" related to Goodman had taken place.[19] Desmond indicated that the media had been subject to writs, and called for a tribunal of inquiry into the Goodman Group.[18] In a March 1989 Irish Times story, Goodman International denied the allegations made by Desmond and Mac Giolla. Goodman said it was shocked by the allegations made and that they were "false and malicious comments". "The use of the privilege of the Dail to further this campaign against an Irish company is a matter of the gravest concern," the statement read.[20]
War in Iraq and emergency legislation
On 2 August 1990, Saddam Hussein ordered his troops to enter and occupy Kuwait. Initially the losses to the Goodman group and its bankers were estimated at £70m.[21] By this time Goodman's companies accounted for 40% of the national beef kill, and had turnover in the region of £1 billion, almost all of it in exports. On 24 August 1990, share prices on the Irish Stock Exchange fell by £400m, with some of Goodman's companies including Food Industries (in which he held a 68% stake) falling from 170p to 110p.[22]
By Friday, 24 August 1990 Taoiseach Charles Haughey recalled the Dáil for an emergency session to pass a section of the Companies Bill on Tuesday, 28 August. Haughey denied that the legislation was being enacted specifically to aid Goodman.[23] The legislation allowed for the courts to appoint an examiner who could freeze company assets for up to 12 months – compared at the time to US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection laws.
It later emerged that Goodman International was owed up to £180 million by Iraq and that the group owed over £400m to banks around the world – and that the group was "insolvent to the tune of somewhat under £100m".[24] As the group holding company, Goodman International, was an unlimited company and Goodman was 98% owner, he could personally be called on to make good any shortfall owing to creditors.[25]
World in Action investigation
On 13 May 1991 Granada Television broadcast an episode of the investigative programme, World in Action with Susan O'Keeffe. The show examined the core business of Goodman International, how its operations were funded by national and European Community schemes, including export insurance and credit schemes, EC export subsidies and the variable premium paid on cattle. It claimed that the dominant position of Goodman in the Irish and British beef processing industry may not be in the best interests of consumers.[26] It also made allegations of inappropriate political influence by Goodman. The programme featured Patrick McGuinness, a former Goodman accountant who had left the company and immigrated to Canada.[27] The next day Opposition parties called for a full judicial inquiry into the allegations made on the programme.[28]
Goodman said he would welcome any investigation from any source and that he would co-operate fully with it. He said he was astounded by the allegations made in the programme. He said that the malpractices alleged during the programme in relation to stamping and weighing meat had never been carried out in a "routine fashion", and if they had taken place they had done so without his knowledge or consent. He said systems that meant payment of £3 million in non-taxable wages to employees had existed but that this had been ended.[29]
The Tribunal of Inquiry into the Beef Processing Industry, also known as the Beef Tribunal, was established on 31 May 1991, chaired by Justice Liam Hamilton. The Tribunal was tasked with
inquiring into the following definite matters of urgent public importance: (i) allegations regarding illegal activities, fraud and malpractice in and in connection with the beef processing industry made or referred to:-- (a) in Dáil Éireann, and (b) on a television programme transmitted by ITV on 13 May 1991; (ii) any matters connected with or relevant to the matters aforesaid which the Tribunal considers it necessary to investigate in connection with its inquiries into the matters mentioned at (i) above; and 2. making such recommendations (if any) as the Tribunal, having regard to its findings, thinks proper.
The Tribunal began hearings on 21 June 1991 and it reported its conclusions in July 1994, at the time the Irish State's longest running inquiry. The Tribunal was established by the then Fianna Fáil/Progressive Democrat coalition, though only after the leader of the PDs, Des O'Malley threatened to pull out of the coalition if no inquiry was established. Then TaoiseachCharles Haughey acquiesced to the demand.[30]
Exports and Environmental Innovations
In 2015, ABP became the first European company to export to America, following the opening of the market after a 16 year long embargo on European beef products.[31]
In 2018, ABP was the first Irish and European beef processing company to secure a contract in China. ABP secured a contract with restaurant chain Wowprime Corporation to supply beef to over 400 of its restaurants in China. The company also secured a contract with the JD.Com e-commerce platform to launch a range of premium Irish beef products.[32]
The company’s processing site in Ellesmere in the UK is the first certified carbon neutral abattoir in the world. The production facility uses by-products from the meat processing operation to provide the heat and electricity for the site.[33]
ABP’s renewables division, Olleco, was runner up for a global environmental award at the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2019. Olleco was recognised for its contribution in helping the food and hospitality industries re-use the waste that they produce. Olleco collects food waste and used cooking oils and converts them into bio-energy and fuels.[34]
In Ireland, ABP is a founding member of the Plastics Action Alliance, a coming together of like-minded food businesses with a common goal of reducing the impact of plastic packaging across the supply chain.[35]
Goodman is also a major shareholder of Barryroe Offshore Energy (BOE) which is threatening to take legal action against the Irish state following the refusal of a permit for oil and gas exploration in Irish waters. [36]
In 2019, his net worth was estimated at €2.45 billion.[37]
Related Research Articles
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle. Beef can be prepared in various ways; cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often ground or minced, as found in most hamburgers. Beef contains protein, iron, and vitamin B12. Along with other kinds of red meat, high consumption is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer and coronary heart disease, especially when processed. Beef has a high environmental impact, being a primary driver of deforestation with the highest greenhouse gas emissions of any agricultural product.
Albert Martin Reynolds was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1992 to 1994. He held cabinet positions between 1979 and 1991, including as minister for finance from 1988 to 1991. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Longford–Roscommon from 1977 to 1992 and for Longford–Westmeath from 1992 to 2002.
There were two governments of the 26th Dáil elected at the 1989 general election on 15 June 1989, both being coalition governments of Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats. The 21st government of Ireland was led by Charles Haughey as Taoiseach and lasted 945 days. The 22nd government of Ireland was led by Albert Reynolds as Taoiseach and lasted 308 days from its appointment until resignation, and continued to carry out its duties for a further 29 days until the appointment of its successor, giving a total of 337 days.
Liam Lawlor was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician. He resigned from the Fianna Fáil in 2000 following a finding by a party standards committee that he had failed to co-operate with its investigation into planning irregularities, and subsequently came into conflict with the Mahon Tribunal.
Cargill, Incorporated is an American multinational food corporation based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded in 1865 by William Wallace Cargill, it is the largest privately held company in the United States in terms of revenue.
Arthur Morgan is an Irish former Sinn Féin politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Louth constituency from 2002 to 2011.
The Tribunal of Inquiry into Certain Planning Matters and Payments, commonly known as the Mahon Tribunal after the name of its last chairman, was a public inquiry in Ireland established by Dáil Éireann in 1997 to investigate allegations of corrupt payments to politicians regarding political decisions. It mostly investigated planning permissions and land rezoning issues in the 1990s in the Dublin County Council area. Judge Alan Mahon was the final chair of the tribunal and its other members were Judge Mary Faherty and Judge Gerald Keys. The original chairman, who was the sole member until just before his retirement, was Judge Feargus Flood, giving rise to the original common name of the Flood Tribunal.
JBS S.A. is a Brazilian company that is the largest meat processing enterprise in the world, producing factory processed beef, chicken, salmon, sheep, pork, and also selling by-products from the processing of these meats. It is headquartered in São Paulo. It was founded in 1953 in Anápolis, Goiás.
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, is an incurable and invariably fatal neurodegenerative disease of cattle. Symptoms include abnormal behavior, trouble walking, and weight loss. Later in the course of the disease, the cow becomes unable to function normally. There is conflicting information about the time between infection and onset of symptoms. In 2002, the World Health Organization suggested it to be approximately four to five years. Time from onset of symptoms to death is generally weeks to months. Spread to humans is believed to result in variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (vCJD). As of 2018, a total of 231 cases of vCJD had been reported globally.
Thomas Aloysius Finlay was an Irish judge, politician and barrister who served as Chief Justice of Ireland and a Judge of the Supreme Court from 1985 to 1994, President of the High Court from 1974 to 1985 and a Judge of the High Court from 1971 to 1985. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin South-Central constituency from 1954 to 1957.
The Irish pork crisis of 2008 was a dioxin contamination incident in Ireland that led to an international recall of pork products from Ireland produced between September and early December of that year. It was disclosed in early December 2008 that contaminated animal feed supplied by one Irish manufacturer to thirty-seven beef farms and nine pig farms across Republic of Ireland, and eight beef farms and one dairy farm in Northern Ireland, had caused the contamination of pork with between 80 and 200 times the EU's recommended limit for dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs i.e. 0.2 ng/g TEQ fat. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland moved on 6 December to recall from the market all Irish pork products dating from 1 September 2008 to that date. The contaminated feed that was supplied to forty-five beef farms across the island was judged to have caused no significant public health risk, accordingly no recall of beef was ordered. Also affected was a dairy farm in Northern Ireland; some milk supplies were withdrawn from circulation. Processors refused to resume slaughter of pigs until they received financial compensation.
The Tribunal of Inquiry into the Beef Processing Industry, also known as the Beef Tribunal, was established on 31 May 1991, chaired by Mr. Justice Liam Hamilton. It was set up to inquire into malpractice in the Irish beef processing industry, mainly centred on Goodman International, owned and controlled by Larry Goodman. It also examined accusations of special dispensations given by the then Minister for Industry and Commerce, Albert Reynolds, to Goodman.
Seán Barrett is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann from 2011 to 2016, Minister for Defence and Minister for the Marine from 1995 to 1997, Government Chief Whip from 1982 to 1986 and 1994 to 1995. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dún Laoghaire constituency from 1981 to 2002 and 2007 to 2020.
Transparency International's 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index scored Ireland at 77 on a scale from 0 to 100. When ranked by score, Ireland ranked 11th among the 180 countries in the Index, where the country ranked first is perceived to have the most honest public sector. For comparison with worldwide scores, the best score was 90, the average score was 43, and the worst score was 11. For comparison with regional scores, the highest score among Western European and European Union countries was 90, the average score was 65 and the lowest score was 42.
Susan O'Keeffe is an Irish journalist and former Labour Party politician.
The Thirtieth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2011 was a proposed amendment to the Constitution of Ireland to provide for the Houses of the Oireachtas to conduct full inquiries. The bill was passed by both houses of the Oireachtas, but rejected at a referendum held on 27 October 2011.
The 2013 horse meat scandal was a food industry scandal in parts of Europe in which foods advertised as containing beef were found to contain undeclared or improperly declared horse meat—as much as 100% of the meat content in some cases. A smaller number of products also contained other undeclared meats, such as pork. The issue came to light on 15 January 2013, when it was reported that horse DNA had been discovered in frozen beefburgers and lasagna sold in several Irish and British supermarkets.
Denis McDonald is an Irish judge and lawyer who has served as a Judge of the High Court since April 2018. He was previously practiced as a barrister with a speciality in commercial law. He was the chair of the Irish Takeover Panel between 2010 and 2018.
Francis Dominick Murphy is a former Irish judge and barrister who served as a Judge of the Supreme Court from 1996 to 2002 and a Judge of the High Court from 1982 and 1996. He was also the chair of the group which produced the Ferns Report in 2005.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
