The Co-op said it is pleased to have found a buyer to invest in the business and maintain services for the local community.

Charitable foundation acquires business for £249 million

The Co-operative Group has sold its farms business to the Wellcome Trust for £249 million, it was announced yesterday (August 4).

The business will now trade as Farmcare Trading Ltd.

One of the highest-spending charitable foundations in the world, the Wellcome Trust has a focus on driving improvements in human and animal health.

Net proceeds from the sale will be invested in the Co-op's core businesses - including food, funeral care, general insurance and legal services - and will help to reduce the group's debts.

The trust acquires 15 farms, including three pack houses, more than 39,500 acres of freehold and third-party owned land, 27 commercial properties and over 100 residential properties.

Just under 250 employees will be transferred with immediate effect. The Co-op said it is pleased to have found a buyer that will develop and invest in the business, while maintaining services for local communities, such as "farm to fork" - its pioneering education programme for children.

"In the Wellcome Trust we have a buyer whose values are closely aligned to those of the Co-operative…" said Richard Pennycook, interim group chief executive. "I expect the farming business to continue to thrive under their committed long-term ownership."

Key achievements of the Wellcome Trust include major funding for the sequencing of the human genetic code, as well as research leading to the introduction of frontline malaria drugs.

Commenting on the acquisition, the trust's chief investment officer, Danny Truell, said: "We believe that we are ideally placed to develop and grow the Co-operative Group’s farms and farm business while providing continuity, and are delighted to have acquired them in what will be one of the largest global deals of its kind."