At Danish Crown we continually strive to improve what we do – from farm to fork – so people around the world can enjoy tasty meals, with full confidence. We have roots back to 1887 and the Danish cooperative movement, so responsibility towards society, employees and our owners, the farmers, is part of our DNA. Danish Crown starts and end with the farmers.
Back in 1887 foresighted farmers in the Horsens area joined together to build the first cooperative slaughterhouse and established the foundation stones for the Danish Crown we know today. Since then, we have become a worldwide food company, but the origins of the farm and the obligations to the farmers are still the same. Danish Crown must pay the Danish farmers best as possible for the raw materials they supply to the company.
At the end of the day, it is the raw materials that the cooperative shareholders provide that are the premise for our company to be healthy. The understanding of our entire business model, where the circle starts and ends with the farmers, is quite essential for all of us employees, who every day set our imprint within the Danish Crown Group.
Being a global leader in sustainable meat production is a big responsibility. Not only must we deliver the goods, but we must also constantly explore new possibilities. We still have a long way to go and many challenges ahead. But we are determined to find better ways to produce food – with respect for livestock, people and the environment. On the road to our goal, we are ready to challenge ourselves, the sector and our customers.
We promise to take the lead but cannot finish the journey alone. Only together can we make food production more sustainable and fundamentally change our relationship to what we eat and how it is produced.
Close to the market
Danish Crown is one of the world’s largest exporters and one of Europe’s largest producers of pork. The Danish Crown Group is also the largest meat-processing company in Europe, and Danish Crown Beef is a key player in the European beef market.
We have production in Denmark, UK, several European countries and China, and have market access to more than 130 countries around the world.
Our organization - with roots in the Danish cooperative society
Danish Crown is a limited company but is owned by the cooperative society ‘Leverandørselskabet Danish Crown AmbA’ which has an elected management consisting of cooperative members. Get an overview of our boards, management and subsidiaries.
In 2020 Danish Crown was turned into a A/S, but Danish Crown is owned of the cooperative society "Leverandørselskabet Danish Crown Amba" which has an elected management consisting of cooperative members. This means that it is the approx. 9,000 Danish farmers who supply pigs and cattle to us, who also own the company.
Danish Crown's co-opted system consists of 3 layers:
- Members
- Board of Representatives
- Board of directors
The organization is based on the cooperative principles, where one man - one vote is one of the basic principles.
Our Organization
- many individual business units, but together we are one team
You will become a part of a big organization whose organizational design are a consequence of acquisitions and mergers through our long history. The Danish Crown organization has a turnover of approx. 58 billion a year and globally we are over 26.000 employees. Most of the turnover are created in the subsidiary companies which both includes production and trading companies. The subsidiary companies have their own individual profile, but overall, there is a strategic coordination between the companies' own production and the other companies in the group.
Danish Crown's business organization consists of a group management (the executive board) and in addition a management team in each of the subsidiaries.