Joyvio Food divests Australis Seafoods to bolster balance sheet.
Joyvio Food, a subsidiary of Joyvio Group, has sold its entire stake in loss-making Chilean salmon producer Australis Seafoods to another group company, Joyvio Premium Fresh, for the symbolic price of one yuan, according to a stock exchange filing.
The move, announced by Joyvio’s parent company Legend Holdings, aims to improve Joyvio Food’s “asset-liability structure” and “optimise asset quality” following a period of mounting financial losses.
Joyvio Food has been struggling with high operating and financial expenses, alongside declining production and sales. For the first quarter of 2025, Joyvio Food reported a 34.1% decrease in revenue to 677.5 million yuan ($93.5 million/€78.6 million), and a net loss attributable to shareholders of 180.9 million yuan ($24.9 million/€20.9 million), widening losses by 106% compared to the previous year.
Australis has continued to post losses, reporting a pre-tax loss of 16.5 million yuan ($2.3 million/€1.9 million) for the first three months of 2025. For the full year 2024, the company recorded a loss of 121.7 million yuan ($16.8 million/€14.1 million).
The restructuring will allow Joyvio Food, which is 46.08% owned by Joyvio Group, to enhance its net asset position and “create room for future operational improvements,” according to the filing. Legend Holdings added that it would consider “potential strategic options” for Australis, including the introduction of new investors to supplement working capital and support future expansion plans.
The transfer is seen as an effort to protect Joyvio Food’s stock market listing by isolating Australis’ financial liabilities, while allowing Legend Holdings to retain long-term strategic flexibility over its seafood interests.
Australis was acquired by Joyvio Food in 2018 as part of a broader expansion into the global aquaculture sector. It is not the first time Legend Holdings has indicated a shift in strategy regarding the asset, with market pressures in the Chilean salmon farming sector continuing to challenge profitability.
The group has yet to confirm any specific timeframe for potential outside investment or further restructuring of Australis.