Manufactures meat, poultry, charcuterie and convenience products for retail and food service
Bell Food Group AG
Basel (Headquarters) · Marchtrenk (AT) · Orbe · Schlieren · Schötz · Arbon · Steinach · Essert-sous-Champvent · Seevetal · Edewecht · Schiltach · HarkebrüggeNew on Amplifa
About Bell Food Group
Bell Food Group AG, headquartered in Basel, is one of Europe's leading meat and convenience processors and the market leader in Switzerland. The offering comprises fresh meat, poultry, charcuterie, seafood as well as ultra-fresh, fresh and shelf-stable convenience products including vegetarian items, produced under the Bell, Hubers, Eisberg, Hilcona and Hügli brands. The Group is represented by around 70 locations in 13 European countries and supplies customers in retail, food service and the food industry. In Switzerland, Austria and Germany, the company operates an integrated poultry production in which the entire value chain from the hatchery to the consumer-ready product is controlled; more than 600 contract producers are connected. The company's roots go back to 1869, when Samuel Bell opened his first butcher's shop in Basel. Around 12'000 employees generate annual revenue of over CHF 4 billion; Coop Group Genossenschaft holds the majority of the company listed on the Swiss stock exchange.
- Site
- Basel
- Processes
- Supplying retail, food service and the food industry, Logistics and distribution, Support of integrated poultry production with consulting and health services
- Materials
- Fresh Meat, Poultry, Charcuterie, Seafood, Convenience Products
- Certificates
- IFS Food Standard 7
- Founded
- 1869
- Employees
- around 12'000
- Industries
- Food industry, Retail, Food service/Gastronomy
- 01
Procurement of raw materials or integrated poultry production (hatchery)
- 02
Processing and production (meat, charcuterie, convenience)
- 03
Packaging
- 04
Logistics and distribution
- 05
Supplying retail, food service, food industry
Production Processes and Product Range
Fresh Meat
Core range of the Bell brand for retail and food service.
Poultry
Integrated production with BTS, organic and free-range farming via more than 600 contract producers.
Charcuterie
Sausage and meat product specialties, including the Bell Würstli since 1924.
Seafood
Fresh seafood specialties, among others via the gastro specialist Geiser AG.
Convenience Products
Ultra-fresh, fresh and shelf-stable convenience products from the Hilcona, Eisberg and Hügli brands, including vegetarian products.
Industries
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality and Certification
Quality assurance is carried out according to recognized food standards; the Marchtrenk site was certified in 2021 as the first plant in the Group according to IFS Food Standard 7. Products meet strict social and ecological minimum standards.
| Evidence | Marchtrenk |
|---|---|
| IFS Food Standard 7 |
Company History
- 1869
Samuel Bell opens the 'Ochsenmetzg' at Streitgasse 13 in Basel
- 1890
First branch at Spalenberg 13 in Basel
- 1897
First charcuterie business
- 1899
Founding of the collective partnership Samuel Bell Söhne
- 1906
Opening of the Central Halls in Basel
- 1907
Conversion into a public limited company; purchase of the Elsässerstrasse 174 site, today's headquarters
- 1908
Start of production of canned meat and sausage products
- 1912
Renamed Bell AG
- 1913
Association with the later Coop Group (Bell Alliance); commissioning of the cold storage house with 40 m high Bell tower
- 1924
Launch of the Bell Würstli
- 1933
Founding of the Bell pension fund
- 2012
Formation of Bell Deutschland GmbH, based in Seevetal
- 2016
Acquisitions of Hubers and Eisberg
- 2017
Complete acquisition of Hilcona AG retroactive to 2.1.2017; sale of the retail business in the Czech Republic
- 2018
Acquisition of Hügli Holding AG (completed 21.2.2018) and Sylvain & CO SA retroactive to 1.1.2018
- 2020
Sale of the production plants in Perbál (HU) and Saint-André-sur-Vieux-Jonc (FR)
- 2021
Acquisition of the sandwich production of ARYZTA Switzerland by Hilcona; Marchtrenk site certified as the first plant in the Group according to IFS Food Standard 7
- 2022
Acquisition of the hatchery Stöckli AG in Schötz; Coop increases its stake to over 66.67 %
- 2023
Geiser AG takes over the supply business from Frischeparadies Zurich