Alliance Group, which this year turned in a $97.9 million pre-tax loss, is looking at its capital structure and may sell assets.
The farmer-owned co-op, the largest sheep meat exporter in New Zealand, said it needed to make changes to ensure it could better navigate volatility in global red meat markets and return to profitability.
The market for NZ meat has generally been favourable in recent years, and Alliance's before-tax profit last year was a record $117.2m.
But its net loss this year was $70.17m against an after-tax profit of $73.6m in the previous financial year, driven mostly by a slump in demand from New Zealand's biggest export destination, China.
Alliance chairman Murray Taggart said changes to the capital structure had been brewing for the past six years, but this year’s shock loss may speed up the process.
In terms of possible asset sales, Taggart was quick to point out the co-op was not planning plant closures.
“Our shareholders’ funds have not been increasing at the same rate as the business has been growing,” he told the Herald.
