7. Larry Goodman

Beef baron: Larry Goodman and his wife Kitty in 2006

February 16 2020 02:30 AM

Food - €2.8bn up €1.95bn

Having made a multi-billion euro fortune from the meat industry over more than 40 years, media-shy Larry Goodman (82) has invested some of his profits in property, and is now believed to be the State’s biggest landlord. His Ardee, Co Louth-headquartered ABP Food Group is Europe’s largest beef processor, with operations in nine countries, and a €3bn turnover, while the commercial property interests include Baggot Street’s Miesian Plaza, and a large block on the corner of Kildare Street and Nassau Street, which he is battling to redevelop.

Son Laurence Jnr also has property interests, with his Urban Life firm having expanded to the UK. It had sales of €33m in 2018, earning €5m in profit, out of €9m accumulated profits, with its Irish developments currently concentrated in Co Louth.

ABP will have benefited from being approved as an exporter of meat to China, but was also one of several firms to be hit by the beef protests last year. Its customers include supermarket private labels, restaurant and takeaway chains, and it owns factories in the North and the UK, as well as renewable energy-related businesses there. One ABP-Slaney Foods firm, WBL, made a €3.1m profit on €339m of sales in 2018.

He also co-owns the Hermitage Clinic with developer Sean Mulryan. His interests include the Galway Clinic and Blackrock Clinic in Dublin. He recently supported a Derry teenager’s fundraising effort for cancer research. He had a 5pc stake in Green Reit, and made a 35pc profit on his €3.1m stake in INM. He had a stake in IPL Plastics, whose shares are down 35pc since it floated. Goodman uses a €30m Dassault Falcon jet and a €7m Dauphin helicopter.

New information that came to light last year revealed that nine Goodman companies in the Netherlands, Jersey, Luxembourg and here had assets of over €3.45bn between them, and made profits of €170m. However, we assume there is about 20pc debt.