Meat-packing industry BEK restarts production in February - open competition announced for employment of 155 people

Zrenjanin-based Meat-packing industry BEK, in bankruptcy, has announced the open competition for employment of 155 people and the production restart in 45 days. BEK's CEO Žarko Milidragović pointed out yesterday (January 14, 2010) that the adaptation of production units was underway and that the factory would be back in operation as soon as it received the license from the Ministry of Agriculture. According to his claims, the factory will get new machines, while the units will be organized and adapted to the highest standards.

– This time, we will aim to get both youth and experience when hiring new people – Milidragović announced and added that only the slaughterhouse would not be put in operation from the start.

The Court of Commerce in Zrenjanin adopted the draft changes to BEK's reorganization plan in October 2009, in the segment that concerns additional capitalization. In that way, company Alfa Logistik from Zrenjanin was allowed to reduce investments and extend the deadline for fulfillment of the submitted reorganization plan.

The initial deadline was March 1st, 2009. After the new decision was made, the Court of Commerce announced that Alfa Logistik was obliged to invest 1,446,363 EUR in fixed assets and 495,049 EUR in capital funds. The deadline for realization of the changed reorganization plan was December 31st, although the production was not restarted even after that deadline. When explained why the commencement of production was so late, Milidragović said that the expectations that the units be put in operation in 2009 were unrealistic.

Former workers and stockholders of BEK claimed earlier that nothing would become of the reorganization plan and warned that the very people who had destroyed the Zrenjanin meat-packing industry had taken the role of its rescuers.