The old slaughterhouse will now become a new, attractive and green area in the North Jutland city, according to the announcement from the new owner.
Since the closure of Danish Crown’s slaughterhouse in Saeby in 2023, Danish Crown has tried to find a buyer for the land and the remaining buildings.
After a long, good dialogue with potential buyers, Danish Crown has now signed an agreement with the family-owned project development company Becker & Nielsen, which will take over the buildings and land in the middle of the North Jutland coastal town.
Becker & Nielsen has extensive experience with large residential, commercial and energy projects, and this is precisely what will shape the future of the former slaughterhouse.
“We look forward to contributing to a new attractive urban area in Saeby with new homes, activities and a large energy project that contributes to the energy supply to the area. The process has been characterized by a very loyal and proper collaboration with Danish Crown and Frederikshavn Municipality, where everyone’s intention has been to try to reactivate the large slaughterhouse area in the best possible way,” says Thomas Fredborg Nielsen, CEO of Becker & Nielsen.
He adds that there is also an ambition to build a residential care home on the site, and that dialogue is ongoing with Frederikshavn Municipality.
Standing empty for three years
Danish Crown announced in April 2023 that the group had to close the North Jutland slaughterhouse due to a decline in the number of slaughter pigs. Since then, the buildings have stood empty, and it is therefore with great satisfaction that a buyer has now been found.
“We are pleased to have found a buyer who has great ambitions for the area, so that our former slaughterhouse, which employed many people in the town, can now benefit Saeby in a new way with housing and energy,” says Peter Houlberg, Senior Director for Fresh Engineering at Danish Crown.
In addition to a property project, the old slaughterhouse site will become the center of a battery project, where the existing infrastructure will be used and will support Frederikshavn Municipality’s climate plan as well as the national work to stabilize its own energy supply. This part of the project has been initiated and is expected to be operational in the first half of 2027.
At Frederikshavn Municipality, Mayor Jon Andersen (V) looks forward to the large slaughterhouse site, which has been idle for over three years, now becoming a new attractive area for Saeby’s citizens.
“I am pleased that we have found a solution that creates new opportunities and contributes to the development of the area for the benefit of the local community. With new homes, we create the framework for more life and activity, while the energy project strengthens the future energy supply. It is a solution that both benefits the area here and now and supports sustainable development in the long term,” says Mayor Jon Andersen.
