The Tönnies Group is a German

family business A family business is a commercial organization in which decision-making is influenced by multiple generations of a family, related by Consanguinity , blood, marriage or adoption, who has both the ability to influence the vision of the business a ...

in the

meat industry The meat industry are the people and companies engaged in modern industrialized livestock agriculture for the production, packing, preservation and marketing of meat (in contrast to dairy products, wool, etc.). In economics, the meat industry is ...

that operates internationally. Its core business is

meat processing The meat-packing industry (also spelled meatpacking industry or meat packing industry) handles the slaughtering, processing, packaging, and distribution of meat from animals such as cattle, pigs, sheep and other livestock. Poultry is generally n ...

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig animal husbandry, husbandry dating back to 8000–9000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooke ...

and

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...

. For pork, Tönnies is the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

market leader Market dominance is the control of a economic market by a firm. A dominant firm possesses the power to affect competition and influence market price. A firms' dominance is a measure of the power of a brand, product, service, or firm, relative ...

. With a revenue of over €6 billion, the company is one of the largest meat groups in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. The company is based in

Brørup Brørup is a railway town, with a population of 4,557 (1 January 2025),Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, with its administrative

headquarters Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...

Rheda-Wiedenbrück Rheda-Wiedenbrück (; Westphalian language, Westphalian: ''Raie-Wienbrügge'') is a city in the Gütersloh (district), district of Gütersloh, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography The twin community lies within the valley of the river E ...

East Westphalia Ostwestfalen-Lippe (, literally ''East(ern) Westphalia-Lippe'', abbreviation OWL) is the eastern region of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, congruent with the administrative region of Detmold and containing the eastern part of Wes ...

, Germany. Tönnies pursues an

internationalization Internationalization or Internationalisation is the process of increasing involvement of enterprises in international markets, although there is no agreed definition of internationalization. Internationalization is a crucial strategy not only for ...

strategy with 25 foreign offices, German and international production sites.

History

The company was founded in 1971 by Bernd Tönnies, joined by his brother

Clemens Tönnies Clemens Tönnies () is a German billionaire who owns 45% of the meat processing company Tönnies Holding. ''Forbes'' estimates his wealth at 1.6 billion US dollars. From 2001 to 2010, he was a chairman of the supervisory board of the football ...

a while later. On July 1, 1994, Bernd Tönnies died. Before he died, he gave 40% of the company's shares to his brother Clemens Tönnies. After his death, his two sons Robert and Clemens junior Tönnies inherited the other 60% of the shares. In 2008, Robert and Clemens junior Tönnies both gave 5% of the share to Clemens Tönnies. In 2012, Robert Tönnies announced that he took over the 25% share of his brother, from then on owning 50% like Clemens Tönnies. Subsequently, Robert Tönnies claimed back the 5% that he gave to Clemens Tönnies, resulting in multiple legal disputes. In 2015, Tönnies took over the Danish pork company Tican with 1,9 millionen slaughtered pigs in 2013/14. On Wednesday, 17 June 2020, work was ramped-down at the Tönnies

slaughterhouse In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a mea ...

due to an outbreak of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

infections originating from there. By that date, 657 employees had tested positive for the virus. That afternoon the district of Gütersloh closed all schools and children's daycare centres until summer holiday. It also closed all post offices and cancelled training for FC Gütersloh 2000 as well as an upcoming

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a Decentralization, decentralized political and social movement that aims to highlight racism, discrimination and Racial inequality in the United States, racial inequality experienced by black people, and to pro ...

demonstration. By 20 June, the number of infections had exceeded 1,000.

Structure

The company has around 19,640 employees (as of 2021) and an annual revenue of €6.065 billion (2021, compared to €7.5 billion in 2019). The export share is about 50 percent. Main owner and company's chairman is

billionaire A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least 1,000,000,000, one billion units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. It is a sub-category of the concept of the ultr ...

Clemens Tönnies with a share of 45% of the

food industry The food industry is a complex, global network of diverse businesses that supplies most of the food consumed by the world's population. The food industry today has become highly diversified, with manufacturing ranging from small, traditional, ...

giant. The company is divided in eight business segments: pork,

sausages A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with Edible salt, salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs, may be included as fillers or ex ...

and beef,

convenience Convenient procedures, products and services are those intended to increase ease in accessibility, save resources (such as time, effort and energy) and decrease frustration. A modern convenience is a labor-saving device, service or substance ...

ingredient In a general sense, an ingredient is a substance which forms part of a mixture. In cooking, recipes specify which ingredients are used to prepare a dish, and the term may also refer to a specific food item in relation to its use in different re ...

logistics Logistics is the part of supply chain management that deals with the efficient forward and reverse flow of goods, services, and related information from the point of origin to the Consumption (economics), point of consumption according to the ...

, as well as international and central services. In Rheda-Wiedenbrück, the company has its headquarters and operates Germanys largest pig slaughterhouse.

Controversies

Working conditions

The

International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations The International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations (IUF) is a global union federation of trade unions with members in a variety of industries, many of which relate to food processi ...

(IUF) criticizes Tönnies for "miserable working conditions", with more than 70% of the employees at the main plant employed under

temporary work Temporary work or temporary employment (also called gigs) refers to an employment situation where the working arrangement is limited to a certain period of time-based on the needs of the employing organization. Temporary employees are sometimes ...

contracts.

Illegal disposal of slaughterhouse waste

From 2017 to 2020, slaughterhouse waste was processed in a biogas plant in Paulushofen, although the plant did not have a permit for this. Much of the slaughterhouse waste came from a slaughterhouse in

Weißenfels Weißenfels (; often written in English as Weissenfels) is the largest town of the Burgenlandkreis district, in southern Saxony-Anhalt, central Germany. It is situated on the river Saale, approximately south of Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Halle. His ...

in Saxony-Anhalt, which belongs to the Tönnies meat group. More than 450 trips are said to have been made from there to Paulushofen.

Racism accusations

In 2019, Clemens Tönnies was temporarily suspended from his position as chairman of the supervisory board of the German soccer team

FC Schalke 04 Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as Schalke 04 (), and abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional sports club from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its football team, ...

because of accusations of

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

statements. On 30 June 2020, Clemens Tönnies decided to step down from his role as the chairman of Schalke's supervisory board after 19 years in service.

Protests against the resumption of operations during the COVID-19 pandemic

On July 4, 2020, the alliance Gemeinsam gegen die Tierindustrie held a rally on the factory premises to demand that the decommissioned slaughterhouse remain permanently closed. Earlier that night, activists had climbed onto the building and attached a banner with the words “Shut down animal industry”. On July 17, 2020, around 300 participants protested against the reopening at the plant site. This was opposed by 300 farmers who welcomed the reopening of the company. In March 2022, Tönnies was criticised for trying to recruit meat factory workers among

Ukrainian refugees An ongoing refugee crisis began in Europe in late February 2022 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Over 6 million refugees fleeing Ukraine are recorded across Europe, while an estimated 8 million others had been Internally displaced person, ...

at the Polish-Ukrainian border.

Protest in Rheda-Wiedenbrück

On February 15, 2024, a peaceful action by the Gemeinsam gegen die Tierindustrie alliance took place on the grounds of the Tönnies headquarters in Rheda-Wiedenbrück. Activists unfurled banners with the inscriptions “Gemeinsam gegen Tönnies” (Together Against Tönnies), “Tönnies Vergesellschaften” (Socialize Tönnies) and “Neokolonialismus stoppen” (Stop Neocolonialism). The alliance announced further actions against the company.

Protest in Crailsheim due to the takeover of Vion by Tönnies Holding

In April 2025, protests took place in

Crailsheim Crailsheim () is a town in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg. Incorporated in 1338, it lies east of Schwäbisch Hall and southwest of Ansbach in the Schwäbisch Hall (district), Schwäbisch Hall district. The city's mai ...

against the planned takeover of the Vion slaughterhouses by the Tönnies company. Around 80 activists from the alliance "Gemeinsam gegen die Tierindustrie" blocked the plant by gluing themselves to the site, setting themselves in concrete and even climbing onto roofs and lampposts. The police had to deploy special forces to remove the demonstrators. Operations at the slaughterhouse came to a temporary standstill. The protest action was aimed specifically at Tönnies, which is criticized by the activists for its role in industrial meat production. The protesters fear that the takeover will lead to a further concentration of market power and have negative consequences for animal welfare. According to the activists, Tönnies is emblematic of a system that relies on factory farming, exploitation and profit orientation. The activists expressed their solidarity with the workers with a banner. To prevent the takeover, the alliance Gemeinsam gegen die Tierindustrie has also filed a complaint with the Federal Cartel Office. The demonstration, which was peaceful according to the police, was not registered. The incident once again highlights the social controversy surrounding the business practices of the company, which has already been criticized in the past for working conditions and animal welfare.

Sponsoring

The Tönnies Group has been a sponsor of the traditional Bundesliga club

for many years. Currently, the subsidiary Böklunder premium sponsor until 2024. Bernd and Clemens Tönnies were also personally involved with the soccer club for years. Since July 2019, there has also been an advertising partnership between the Tönnies Group and

Arminia Bielefeld DSC Arminia Bielefeld (; full name: ; commonly known as Arminia Bielefeld (), also known as ''Die Arminen'' or ''Die Blauen'' ), or just Arminia (), is a German sports club from Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia. Arminia is most well known as ...

. Due to the events surrounding the coronavirus outbreak, the sports club decided to end the partnership at the end of the season.

References

External links

* {{coord, 51, 51, 48, N, 8, 19, 20, E, region:DE-NW_type:landmark, display=title Meat companies of Germany Companies based in North Rhine-Westphalia Food and drink companies established in 1971 Family-owned companies of Germany German companies established in 1971 1971 establishments in West Germany