Wezep, 30 September 2022
On the afternoon of 29 September 2022, Mr Peter Poortinga, CEO Plukon Food Group, received the French honour Chevalier dans l’Ordre national du Mérite (Knight of the National Order of Merit). This award was presented on behalf of the President of the French Republic by Olivier Becht, Minister for Foreign Trade, Attractiveness and French Nationals Abroad, during a reception at the French residence in The Hague.
Peter Poortinga received this prestigious title due to his role as CEO of the Plukon Food Group. Since its acquisition by Plukon in 2017, the French company DUC has recovered and become a profitable organisation once again, preserving a large number of French jobs as a result.
General Charles de Gaulle created the Ordre National du Mérite (National Order of Merit) in 1963 as a means of rewarding military personnel and civilians for their services to the French nation.
‘It is an honour to receive this award. When Plukon acquired DUC in 2017, the company was experiencing financial difficulties. We invested a great deal and optimised the production process. Together with the staff, we enabled DUC to become a profitable company again and we were able to preserve many jobs as a result of this. Now I have been appointed ‘Chevalier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite’, and I consider this a great recognition of the developments we have achieved in recent years. I am extremely proud of that,’ said Peter Poortinga.
About the Plukon Food Group
Plukon Food Group is an innovative player in the field of poultry, meals, meal components and alternative proteins in Europe. The company has seven branches in the Netherlands, six in Germany, three in Belgium, one in Poland, seven in France and four in Spain, and employs almost 9000 staff in total. Plukon’s turnover in 2021 was around 2.2 billion euros.
