Together with their father, Alfons De Keyser, brothers Romain and Roland transform the family-owned abattoir into a butcher’s workshop. That’s when the business really takes off, and father and sons begin focusing on the production of cold cuts and deli meats. The cooked hams from De Keyser soon become a phenomenon, and the company begins supplying other butchers within the region.
They decide to add a variety of meat preparations to their product range. In 1975, a whole new meat manufacturing plant is built, adjoining the former workshop.
In 1992, exactly 30 years after the brothers joined their father’s workshop, they get ready to expand once more. A state-of-the-art reception area, cooling rooms, manufacturing hall, cooking department and a much larger warehouse are added to the business.
In 2001, the brothers decide to leave the business in the hands of a motivated group of entrepreneurs, who are to take great care of their life’s work. The new business owners continue to expand the business, both within Belgium and abroad.
They modernise the existing production processes and invest in new activities, such as diced and sliced meats packaged for retail sale, as well as wholesale packaging for the distribution and food service industries.
In 2007, a second site in Aalter, Belgium, became the home of a brand new manufacturing plant for dicing, slicing and packaging activities. It also houses the new logistics centre, warehouse and offices.
In 2010, the capacity was increased by introducing a new production line.
In 2012, the business capacity was increased once again, this time by adding another packaging line.
In 2014 and 2015, the group decided to focus on optimisation and investments in operational excellence – the next step in the continued growth of the company.
In the future, Vleeswaren De Keyser will continue modernising and investing in the further expansion of its production capacity. The overall objective of the business is to keep growing and continue to guarantee a delivery service of the highest level within a culture of ongoing improvement.
