UCDV

What UCDV does

UCDV (Coopérative Agricole UCDV) is a French agricultural cooperative founded in 1967 and headquartered in Saussay-la-Campagne, Normandy (Eure department). It operates a dehydration and pelletization platform that converts alfalfa and sugar beet pulp into bulk animal feed pellets. The cooperative is owned by 1,300 member-farmers (adhérents), governed by 15 administrators, and staffed by 33 salaried employees. Over time it has progressively concentrated regional production by absorbing factories in Fresne l'Archevesque, Mézières-en-Vexin, Dangu, and Lierville, resulting in a single integrated dehydration site that produces 15,000 tonnes/year of conventional alfalfa, 10,000 tonnes/year of organic (BIO) alfalfa, and 55,000 tonnes/year of pressed beet pulp pellets, plus 1,000 tonnes/year of flax (lin). Sub-product variants — Luzerne Cheval (17% protein) and Luzerne Lapin (>30% cellulose) — address equine and rabbit feed niches, and the product set carries GMP+ FSA, GMP+ FRA, Agriculture Biologique (AB), and 2BSvs certifications with a guaranteed non-GMO position and 100% sustainable fuel usage.

The core technology is thermal/mechanical dehydration: raw alfalfa and pressed beet pulp (a sugar-manufacturing byproduct sourced from Saint Louis Sucre's Etrepagny plant, located only a few kilometers away) are dried, ground, pelletized, and dust-separated into finished pellets. Alfalfa, a nitrogen-fixing legume, delivers agronomic benefits to member-farmers (3–4 harvests/year, up to 3 tonnes protein/hectare, up to 5% cereal yield uplift in the following rotation) while supplying high-protein, cellulose-rich feed for ruminants, horses, and rabbits; beet pulp provides digestible fiber and natural sugars for ruminants.

UCDV's revenue model is one-time bulk sale of pellets, primarily B2B direct to professional livestock farmers, with retail access for individual consumers handled through a dedicated channel partner, SAVN (Les Etablissements SAVN), which operates on the same Saussay-la-Campagne site. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; sales are organized by appointment (loading Mon/Fri via 02 32 55 88 29) and the cooperative does not maintain consumer-facing e-commerce, app distribution, or public price lists.

Name

UCDV

Legal name

Coopérative Agricole UCDV

Website

https://ucdv.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1967

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

UCDV is a French agricultural cooperative founded in 1967 in Normandy that dehydrates and pelletizes alfalfa and sugar beet pulp into bulk animal feed, serving professional livestock farmers (ruminants, equine, rabbits) via direct B2B sales and retail partner SAVN.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Animal Feed Manufacturing

NAICS

Animal Food Manufacturing (3111), Support Activities for Animal Production (11521)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100), Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Pelleted & Crumbled Feed Manufacturing (AFADAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Hay Products (Baled, Chopped, Cubes) (AFADAHAA), Straw & Bedding Roughage (Baled Straw, Chaff, Stover) (AFADAHAE)

Keywords

• Animal feed pellets
• Alfalfa processing
• Beet pulp pellets
• Dehydration services
• Livestock nutrition

Headquarters

HQ city

La Campagne

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Sale of alfalfa pellets and products: UCDV produces and sells conventional alfalfa, organic alfalfa, horse-grade alfalfa, and rabbit alfalfa pellets. The cooperative aggregates member-farmers' alfalfa crops, processes them through dehydration and pelletization, and markets the finished products to professional buyers (farmers, livestock operators) and through channel partners for retail consumers.
2. Sale of beet pulp pellets: UCDV produces 55,000 tonnes per year of pressed and pelletized beet pulp, a byproduct of sugar manufacturing sourced from Saint Louis Sucre Etrepagny. Sold in bulk to professionals. Beet pulp provides digestible fiber, natural sugars, vitamins, minerals, and oligelements for ruminants and other livestock.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

UCDV is an agricultural cooperative that dehydrates, grinds, pelletizes, and dust-separates alfalfa (conventional and organic) and pressed sugar beet pulp to manufacture bulk animal feed pellets. It sells Luzerne Conventionnelle, Luzerne BIO, Luzerne Cheval, Luzerne Lapin, and Pulpe de betterave pellets in bulk to professional livestock farmers in France, with retail consumers directed to partner SAVN.

Product overview

UCDV is an agricultural cooperative specializing in dehydration and pelletization of alfalfa and sugar beet pulp for animal feed. Founded in 1967 and located in Saussay-la-Campagne, France, the cooperative operates across a portfolio of five products: Luzerne Conventionnelle (15,000 tonnes/year), Luzerne BIO (10,000 tonnes/year), Luzerne Cheval (17% protein alfalfa for horses), Luzerne Lapin (high-cellulose alfalfa for rabbits), and Pulpe de betterave (55,000 tonnes/year of beet pulp pellets). All products are sold in bulk to professional buyers and are GMP+ certified with non-GMO guarantees.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Luzerne Conventionnelle (Conventional Alfalfa Pellets) Standard alfalfa pellets produced through dehydration, drying, grinding, granulation, and dust separation. A protein-rich legume offering minerals, vitamins, and digestible cellulose for ruminants. Annual production capacity of 15,000 tonnes.
• Luzerne BIO (Organic Alfalfa Pellets) Organic alfalfa pellets cultivated without pesticides or chemical fertilizers, AB-certified (Agriculture Biologique), serving as a healthy and sustainable protein and nutrient source for livestock. Annual production capacity of 10,000 tonnes.
• Luzerne Cheval (Horse-Grade Alfalfa Pellets)

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• SAVNcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSAVN (Les Etablissements SAVN) is a channel partner located at Rue de la déshydratation, 27150 Saussay-la-Campagne (same site as UCDV). SAVN serves individual consumers and hobby farmers who wish to purchase Luzerne products in smaller quantities, providing retail distribution services for UCDV's consumer-facing alfalfa product lines. Contact: 02 32 55 99 17 / [email protected]
• Saint Louis Sucre (Etrepagny)coreOthersSaint Louis Sucre's Etrepagny facility supplies the pressed beet pulp byproduct from sugar manufacturing, which UCDV processes into high-quality pellets. Located only a few kilometers from UCDV's plant, the proximity enables efficient logistics and a circular economy relationship in the regional agricultural supply chain.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Avril Group: French agro-industrial group covering oilseed crushing, animal nutrition (Sanders), and biofuel/bioeconomy verticals. Sanders is a direct feed manufacturer peer to UCDV; the broader group shares UCDV's bioeconomy/certified-sustainability positioning under RED II.
• Agrifirm: Dutch agricultural cooperative producing compound animal feeds, premixes, and specialty feed ingredients across Europe. Comparable through its cooperative governance model and direct supply to professional livestock farmers, despite broader geographic and product reach than UCDV.
• InVivo Group: French agricultural cooperative federation including animal nutrition (InVivo Animal Nutrition / Nealia), grain trading, and retail. Overlaps with UCDV on cooperative model, French farmer base, and feed manufacturing, though with a significantly wider geographic and product footprint.
• ForFarmers: Largest feed manufacturer in Europe with total feed solutions across compound feed, specialties, and raw materials. Comparable as a cooperative-style European feed producer serving professional livestock farmers, though with a much broader portfolio than UCDV's alfalfa/beet pulp focus.
• Cargill Animal Nutrition: Global animal feed and nutrition business with European operations across compound feed, premixes, and specialty ingredients (including the Provimi brand). Relevant incumbent peer — overlapping feed channel and customer base to UCDV, but vastly larger scale and product breadth.
• DLG (Dansk Landbrugs Grovvareselskab): Danish farmer-owned cooperative serving European agriculture with feed, crop inputs, and grain handling. Comparable cooperative structure and European livestock feed channel, though with a much broader product portfolio than UCDV's dehydration focus.

Direct peers

• Désialis: Leading French cooperative specializing in dehydrated alfalfa (luzerne) production and pelletization for animal feed. Closest direct peer to UCDV — same geography (Normandy/northern France), same dehydration technology, same cooperative governance model, and same product portfolio targeting ruminant feed.
• Vilofoss: European specialist in dehydrated alfalfa, grass, and sugar beet pulp pellets for animal feed, operating across Denmark, Germany, and beyond. Highly comparable to UCDV on product mix (alfalfa + beet pulp pellets), processing technology, and professional B2B feed channel.
• Luzeal: French agricultural dehydration cooperative producing alfalfa pellets and related forage products for animal feed. Direct competitor to UCDV with similar member-farmer cooperative structure, dehydration/pelletization technology, and French distribution focus.

Emerging players

• AB Neo (AB Agri): European specialty animal nutrition business focused on young animal nutrition and feed additives, with operations in Spain and across Europe. Comparable as a specialized, sustainability-oriented feed company, though narrower in species focus (young animals) than UCDV.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ucdv

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about UCDV