Our Heritage

Wim Hendrix was the founder of Hendrix Fabrieken N.V., a company which grew to become one of the largest private cattle feed, poultry feed and pig feed compounders in The Netherlands. His dedication to innovation and high performance remains strong in the Hisex brand, even to this day.

Wim Hendrix began his career by starting businesses in animal health (Intervet, know today as Merck Animal Health) as well as chicken and poultry genetics for the European market (Euribrid). Together with Ir. Guust van den Eijnden, a graduate in animal breeding and genetics of Wageningen Agricultural University, they believed that hybrid laying hens (i.e. crossbred laying hens) were the future. They remained determined to introduce the hybrid laying hens to the European market, despite resistance from the established poultry breeders. 

Animal breeding programs were developed for laying hens (Hisex), broilers (Hybro) and pigs (Hypor). The Hisex Brown and Hisex White laying hen chicken strains demonstrated excellent egg quality directly from the beginning. Still today, it is Quality that counts for the Hisex White and Hisex Brown parent stock and commercial laying hens. 

Euribrid agreed to merge the Hisex laying hen breeding activities in a joint venture with Hendrix Poultry Breeders. This enabled them to expand their joint market position, to share knowledge on animal breeding and to create the opportunity to become the world leader in chicken genetics. By that time, they bred and sold parent stock and laying hens from the Bovans, the Dekalb and Hisex brands.

In 2005 Hendrix Genetics was formed, and Hendrix Genetics moved into the Villa de Körver, the family house which was built by Wim de Korver in 1937. In that same year, the breeding activities of the Institut de Sélection Animale were integrated with those of Hendrix Poultry Breeders, together they formed the bases of what is known today as Hendrix Genetics. Since 2005, the laying hen portfolio of Hendrix Genetics constitutes of Hisex, Bovans, Dekalb, Babcock, ISA, and Shaver. By combining best practices in poultry breeding and chicken genetics, and adopting the latest technologies and investing in longer cycles, the Hendrix Genetics laying hens have been able to take a top position in the global egg market.