NeXusAvicultura | Company News | April 2026
nnnnGreen light for Huevos Guillén’s new free-range egg farm in Ribera del Fresno: 320,000 hens and 97 million eggs per year. Once completed, it will become the group’s second-largest free-range farm, after the one in Teruel.
nnnnThe Valencia-based group strengthens its commitment to Extremadura with an investment of €14.5M as part of a €210M plan through 2028 to reach 10 million birds by 2030
nnnnThe Directorate-General for Sustainability of the Junta de Extremadura published on Thursday, 23 April 2026, the favourable resolution for the Environmental Impact Declaration (EID) for the new free-range hen farm that Grupo Huevos Guillén will build in Ribera del Fresno (Badajoz, Extremadura), through its subsidiary Dehesa de Monfragüe, S.L.U. The local council has also confirmed the planning compatibility of the project, meaning construction can begin immediately. This will be the group’s second facility in Extremadura, alongside the one in Almendralejo, and a further step on the roadmap towards a cage-free production model.
nnnnnnnnn“320,000 birds, 97 million eggs per year and 60 direct jobs: Ribera del Fresno becomes the second pillar in Extremadura for Spain’s leading free-range egg producer.”
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An investment of €14.5 million within a €210M plan
nnnnThe future facility will reach a maximum capacity of 320,000 hens and a production approaching 97 million eggs per year (96,960,000, according to the project report). The direct investment amounts to €14.5 million and forms part of the group’s four-year strategic investment plan of €210M committed to accelerating its transition: €54M already deployed in 2025, €58M in 2026, €55M in 2027 and €42M in 2028.
nnnnIn terms of employment, Huevos Guillén expects to create more than 60 direct jobs and a significant volume of indirect employment over the next five years — a far from negligible boost for the Tierra de Barros region. The corporate target for the 2030 horizon is clear: to reach 10 million birds, nearly doubling the current flock. As of April 2026, Huevos Guillén has a census of 5.5 million layers, but will close 2026 with over 6 million laying hens.
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What the farm will look like: five production units and outdoor ranges providing 4 m²/hen
nnnnThe complex will be located to the south-east of Ribera del Fresno, 4,500 metres from the town centre and 3,700 metres from Hinojosa del Valle, comfortably meeting the minimum required distance of 1,000 metres from inhabited areas. The design is structured around five independent production units:
nnnn→ Units 1, 2 and 3: 80,000 birds each, with two laying houses, an egg store and a covered manure store.
nnnn→ Units 4 and 5: 40,000 birds each, with one laying house, a store and a manure store.
nnnnProduction will be carried out entirely under the free-range system, with hens having free access to both the interior and exterior of the houses, and five outdoor ranges guaranteeing the minimum regulatory area of 4 m² per hen. The proximity to the Almendralejo processing centre will allow logistical synergies to be leveraged for the final grading and packing stage before the product reaches the consumer.
nnnnnnnnn“Five production units, eight laying houses and 4 m² per hen: the architecture of the production system has been designed to respond to an increasingly animal-welfare-conscious consumer.”
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The roadmap is clear: 80% of the flock in cage-free systems by 2026
nnnnThe Ribera del Fresno project is consistent with the strategy Huevos Guillén has been implementing for years. The company already announced in 2024 that its goal was for two in every three eggs it produces to come from hens housed in cage-free systems, and by the end of 2026 it will exceed 80% of its flock in alternative systems. This progression reflects both pressure from the retail shelf — with the main distribution chains committed to phasing out caged eggs — and growing social awareness of animal welfare and environmental sustainability.
nnnnIn parallel, the group has maintained a remarkable pace of expansion across the national market. Last year it acquired two poultry farms to reach 6.2 million layers, and closed its accounts with €30 million in profit and sales of €273 million, in a market environment put under pressure by avian influenza and the structural readjustment of the European egg sector.
nnnnnnnnn“From 5.5 to 10 million hens in five years: Huevos Guillén has committed to the transition to cage-free systems, regardless of potentially stricter future regulatory frameworks.”
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Extremadura as a platform: proximity, dehesa landscape and logistics
nnnnThe choice of Extremadura is no coincidence. The combination of available land, an agricultural environment, competitive costs and the existence of a pre-existing plant in Almendralejo creates a territorial cluster with scalable capacity. Added to this is growing domestic demand and the weight of the export channel: Spanish alternative-system eggs are today one of the most sought-after assets on the European market, with major operations such as Agotzaina’s €50M entry into the capital of Spain’s largest egg exporter.
nnnnGuillén’s move also fits within the broader trend of an investment boom in Spanish eggs, with rising prices and new financial entrants. Unlike other operators that are opening their capital to external investors, Huevos Guillén maintains its growth strategy leveraged on its own cash and debt, reinforcing its prominent position in the Spanish laying sector.
nnnnnnnnn“While international private equity lands in the Spanish egg sector, Huevos Guillén continues to grow under its own steam: €210M of investment without relinquishing shareholder control.”
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Group overview: 13 farms, 5.5 million birds and 110 million dozens
nnnnWith more than four decades of history, Grupo Huevos Guillén operates 13 wholly owned farms and an egg products processing business, and markets around 110 million dozens of eggs per year from hens and quail. Its current flock stands at around 5.5 million layers, with an explicit commitment to cage-free production, food safety and process digitalisation. The group aspires to be a benchmark for the transition towards a more sustainable poultry sector better aligned with social expectations.
nnnnThe new farm in Ribera del Fresno (the second-largest free-range farm in the Huevos Guillén group, after the one in Teruel), by virtue of its scale and its entirely free-range nature, thus becomes a key piece on the board: it demonstrates that the future of the Spanish egg industry lies in large-scale facilities, enhanced animal welfare and full traceability. The challenge, as ever, will be to reconcile volume, cost and environmental requirements without sacrificing the profitability that makes continued investment possible.
nnnnnnnnnnnnn“The question is no longer whether Spanish eggs will be cage-free, but at what speed and at what cost.”
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PROJECT SUMMARY SHEET
nnnn| Developer | Dehesa de Monfragüe, S.L.U. (Grupo Huevos Guillén) |
| Location | Ribera del Fresno (Badajoz), Extremadura |
| Capacity | 320,000 free-range hens |
| Projected output | 96,960,000 eggs/year (≈97 million) |
| Direct investment | €14.5 million |
| Corporate plan | €210M in 2025–2028 (54+58+55+42 M€) |
| Infrastructure | 5 production units · 8 laying houses · 5 outdoor ranges |
| Outdoor range area | 4 m² per hen (regulatory minimum) |
| Employment | +60 direct jobs projected over 5 years |
| 2030 target | 10 million birds across the group |
| Cage-free target 2026 | >80% of flock cage-free |
| Regulatory approvals | Favourable EID from the Junta de Extremadura · Planning compatibility confirmed by local council |
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Further reading:
-. News on poultry companies at NeXusAvicultura.com
-. DOE Junta de Extremadura 23 April 2026: CONSEJERÍA DE AGRICULTURA, GANADERÍA Y DESARROLLO SOSTENIBLE
RESOLUTION of 16 April 2026, of the Directorate-General for Sustainability, issuing the environmental impact declaration for the free-range hen poultry complex project in the municipal district of Ribera del Fresno, promoted by Dehesa de Monfragüe, SLU. File no.: IA25/1193. (2026060868)
-. News on HUEVOS GUILLÉN
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