Jerry Henchy: Position 'redundant' and refused to comment

DAIRYGOLD's property and DIY spin-off company, Reox Holdings, is maintaining silence on the severance package being paid to its former chief executive, Jerry Henchy, amid claims from former junior minister Ned O'Keeffe that the sum could reach €3m.

O'Keeffe, an influential Dairygold co-op member, is insisting there be "no golden handshake" for Henchy, whose position was made "redundant" last Wednesday. He departed as Dairygold's chief executive in January.

"He pursued rationalisation without a vision of where the co-op was going," claimed O'Keeffe.

Reox declined to comment on the Cork TD's claims, stating that the "redundancy details are confidential between the two parties". On Friday, Henchy refused to comment on any Reox-related matters.

During his tenure at Dairygold, Henchy pursued a rationalisation programme that reduced staff numbers from 3,200 to 970 in five years.