The UK-based Volac group specialises in turning whey into ingredients for sports nutrition, with by- products being sold for food and animal nutrition. At its heart is its whey processing facility in Felinfach in Wales.

Arla Foods Ingredients has today signed an agreement to acquire the Whey Nutrition division of Volac’s business through a purchase of the shares in Volac Whey Nutrition Holdings Limited and its subsidiaries, Volac Whey Nutrition Limited and Volac Renewable Energy Limited. Completion of the transaction is expected later this year subject to required regulatory approvals.

The acquisition would play a significant role in Arla Foods Ingredients’ future plans. It envisions the Felinfach site as a global production hub and a cornerstone of an enhanced product offering in the performance, health and food sectors.

For Volac, this represents a logical step in its evolution as a family business and provides the springboard for the optimal development of the Whey Nutrition Business as well as Volac’s remaining Animal Nutrition Business.

Luis Cubel, group vice president and managing director of Arla Foods Ingredients, said: “This brings together two complementary offerings in a growing and increasingly international space for whey products. Volac is a pioneer in the use of whey protein for performance nutrition and has a wealth of expertise as well as an incredibly talented team. It shares our commitment to helping companies worldwide harness the full potential of whey, and we’re hugely excited about the opportunities that lie ahead.”

James Neville, joint owner of Volac, on behalf of the Neville family, said: “Whey processing started at the Felinfach site more than three decades ago, and we couldn’t be prouder of everything that’s been achieved by everyone involved in the business since then. When considering the future of Volac Whey Nutrition and the opportunities that lie ahead for that business, it was crucial for us to choose a partner with the right values and expertise. Arla Foods Ingredients has the ambition and the knowledge to take the business to the next level.”

The global sports nutrition industry has grown at a CAGR of 9% since 2010. By 2028, it is projected to be worth 42.2 billion USD, up from 28.1 billion in 2023.¹Volac Whey Nutrition’s portfolio includes the Volactive^® range. Arla Foods Ingredients’ portfolio includes the Lacprodan^® range of solutions for sports nutrition applications including RTDs, powder shakes and protein bars. ​ ​ ​ 

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BV Dairy is a successful manufacturer of specialist chilled dairy products based in Dorset, UK. It services customers throughout England, Wales and Scotland, offering a comprehensive end-to-end solution to customers across food manufacturing and food service, as well as offering co-manufacturing to exciting growth markets such as the home meal solutions and gut health sectors, offering considerable opportunities for the future.

Commenting on the announcement, Shelagh Hancock, chief executive of First Milk, said, “I am delighted to complete the acquisition of BV Dairy, a successful family-owned business, which shares many common values with First Milk – a focus on people and community, environmental performance, exceptional quality and long-term value creation. We look forward to welcoming the wider BV Dairy family into our First Milk family.

“The BV Dairy business has strong customer relationships and a reputation for quality and service across food manufacture and food service. This provides a genuine extension to our business, extending our manufacturing and market reach, offering a platform for the further growth and development of our business.”

Farmer director and vice-chairman, Mike Smith, added, “This purchase builds on the existing strengths of First Milk and will bring wider benefits, adding value for our members whilst creating opportunities for our colleagues and enabling us to extend our regenerative positioning into a broader range of dairy products and customers. This is a great step forward as we work together to secure the future.”

Jim Highnam, managing director of BV Dairy, said, “Having made the decision to sell the business, we wanted to ensure that the new owners would provide a secure future for our customers, colleagues, farmers and suppliers. As such, I’m pleased to finalise this transaction and see BV Dairy become part of First Milk, as both businesses share a down-to-earth, pragmatic approach, balancing the needs of all stakeholders. I look forward to working with our new First Milk colleagues to continue to grow and develop BV Dairy.”

First Milk is owned by around 700 farming families spread across Britain, and has cheese production sites in the Lake District of the UK and Pembrokeshire, employing an additional 220 people. BV Dairy employs over 160 in the Dorset area.

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Naked Foods is a respected and proven manufacturer within the food & beverage industry, producing a wide range of fruit and confectionery sauces for UK and Irish food companies from its BRC A* grade factory in Kent. The company, established in 2003, has grown organically to now providing over 300 recipes and several thousand tonnes of sauces each year. The products include fruit preps for yogurts, dairy drinks, ice cream and plant-based products, as well as sweet and confectionery fillings for bakery and dessert products.

The acquisition allows Meadow to expand its portfolio into new product areas while enabling customers to benefit from the many synergies between the businesses, including product knowledge and manufacturing expertise. Meadow is also able to enhance its customer offering, while leveraging the company’s existing manufacturing, sales and NPD capabilities.

Raj Tugnait, chief executive of Meadow, comments: “For some time our customers have been urging us to enter the sweet sauce category. It is an adjacent category and a natural extension to what we already do. There is a gap in the market for an agile player who can develop, scale-up and manufacture fruit preparations and Naked Foods has an enviable reputation for its quality and nimbleness. The team and culture felt right to be part of the Meadow family. Adding sweet sauces allows us to further diversify our portfolio and strengthen our position as a leading supplier of quality food ingredients. Meadow has a three-pronged growth plan –organic; growing with our existing customers and in existing categories, inorganic; building new capabilities in house; and finally acquiring quality businesses that will compliment Meadow and make it a better proposition for its customers. Naked Foods fits perfectly with that plan.” Meadow will support the Naked Foods team to accelerate their own ambitious growth plan.

This acquisition is the latest from Meadow, following the purchase of Nimbus Foods, also in the confectionery space, and is a further step towards Meadow delivering on its business growth strategy Meadow is a leading ingredients business, partnering with the world’s biggest food manufacturers to solve their most complex challenges. Experts in the dairy, confectionery and plant-based industries, Meadow is the essential ingredient in many favourite food brands. The company now employs over 500 people across five BRC AA and A* accredited sites in Chester, Peterborough, Holme-on-Spalding Moor, Dolgellau and Headcorn.

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The sale will include the following business activities: the brands Landliebe, Tuffi, Südmilch, Puddis, Mondelice, various private labels in the white dairy range produced by FrieslandCampina in Germany, the foodservice brand Gastro, as well as the production facilities, warehouses and distribution centres in Heilbronn, Cologne and Schefflenz.

Moving forward, FrieslandCampina Germany will focus on the marketing and sales of its international brands Valess, Chocomel, its cheese brands – including Frico and Holland Master – and private labels produced by FrieslandCampina outside Germany, including cheese and cream spray cans. Additionally, the company will continue its Professional business. FrieslandCampina will also maintain its presence with Kievit in Lippstadt and with DFE Pharma in Goch and Nörten-Hardenberg.

The Dutch concern will continue to collect and process the milk from its German member dairy farmers. For the German member dairy farmers, the rights and obligations associated with membership of the cooperative remain unchanged. They will also continue to be entitled to the FrieslandCampina guaranteed price, the supplementary cash payment, allocation of profit to the general reserves and, if applicable, any supplementary payments. The new owner will take over the supplier contracts of the German non-member dairy farmers.

The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

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The acquisition comes on the heels of Admix’s 33rd anniversary since its founding in 1989 and is a significant step forward for Admix in expanding dispersion and agitation product lines and service offerings. Providing everything from laboratory scale agitators to large turnkey projects, Diaf Pilvad offers over 100 years of experience and expertise to the industrial sector, with its machinery exported worldwide and supported by qualified local representatives.

Mike Rizzo, CEO of Admix, comments: “We are thrilled to bring Diaf Pilvad on board. They are a company with a talented team whose standards for creating the best possible customer experience are aligned with our values. Their long-standing reputation for quality and reliability, combined with years of industrial expertise, fits perfectly with our EMEA and global growth strategy.”

“The acquisition will accelerate our ability to offer processors of paints, coatings, inks, and other chemical products, a complete solution for their mixing operations as well as provide an extensive engineering and manufacturing capability for our EMEA customers,” said Knud Erik Juhl Jensen, general manager of Admix Europe. “With this acquisition we will be able to grow and further develop our business in EMEA. We plan to relocate our Admix Europe operations to Diaf Pilvad’s facility in Fredensborg to fully integrate our businesses and organizations, and plan to hire additional employees in the near future.”

Diaf Pilvad ApS has been 100% owned and managed by Erik Pilvad who states: “I am very pleased that it is precisely Admix Europe ApS who is purchasing my company. We have had a good business collaboration for many years, as we operate in terms of products within the same industry area. In my opinion, the merger is a perfect match, where significant synergies are achieved by merging the two companies.”

Erik Pilvad will continue with the company for six months, contributing his wealth of knowledge and experience and to aid in a successful transition. Pilvad comments, “I started the company back in 1973, so it is very dear to me, and I will do everything to ensure a good future for the company and its employees. The plan is for the combined company to continue from the premises in Fredensborg.”

Diaf Pilvad operates a product development and manufacturing facility in Fredensborg, Denmark, just 14km northeast of Admix Europe ApS. Efforts to integrate the two companies will begin immediately to provide the customers of both companies’ additional products and services. A new state-of-the-art demonstration and testing center will be constructed, with its opening planned for the Fall of 2022 to further support regional customers and prospects.

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The company says the latter offers an attractive growth segment and benefits synergies in sales and marketing areas. Cold coffee drinks are increasingly popular in Switzerland, but abroad as well.

Since its launch at the beginning of 2013, Lattesso products are produced exclusively at the Cremo site in Sider. InnoprAx founder and majority shareholder, Erich Kienle, sees a real win-win situation in this deal and future cooperation. “To ensure product quality, growth and further development of the Latesso brand, it was obvious to enter this deal with our proven partner Cremo. I am happy that it worked,” Kienle noted.

In the new configuration, Kienle will take over the management of Cremo Marketing.

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As a strategic expansion of its product range, the dairy specialist WS Warmsener Spezialitäten GmbH, a company of the Uelzena Group, is investing in the production of liquid mixes for soft ice cream and milkshakes. For this purpose, the company is taking over the complete production facilities and the registered trademark “PARADICE” from the Elsdorfer Molkerei und Feinkost GmbH. After the relocation of the entire production technology from Elsdorf to Warmsen by the end of this year, the production and marketing of the entire product range is scheduled to start in Warmsen in spring 2022.

“We are very pleased that the management of the Elsdorfer Molkerei has given us their trust and that we are allowed to take over the complete ice cream mix business,” comments Johannes Rother, managing director Marketing and Sales of WS Warmsener Spezialitäten GmbH on the agreed transfer. “The new products are an optimal addition to our range of milk-based ingredients for the confectionery, ice cream and food industries and we can especially continue to expand our competence as a supplier for ice cream.”

The new product range includes bag-in-box packed liquid mixes for soft ice cream, classic ice cream, frozen yogurt, milkshakes and water ice and is primarily addressed to the customer groups of wholesalers and specialist retailers, system gastronomy and ice cream parlours. In addition to the PARADICE brand, customers can also get their own branding for the products.

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“With Athenos, the number 1 in the US feta market joins Emmi. We are convinced to be well positioned for the further development of this business. It strengthens our position in the strategically important US market and thus our growing export business from Switzerland, if we can offer our customers an even more extensive and attractive total assortment in the future,” says Matthias Kunz, executive vice president of the Americas Division at Emmi.

Central to the strategic plan is Emmi Roth USA, which has been in the Emmi Group stable since 2009. Emmi Roth now operates three production sites in the state of Wisconsin and serves nationwide customers from retail trade and food service with locally manufactured and Switss imported speciality cheeses.

Emmi expects that the popularity of feta cheese in the US will continue to increase. The acquisition of Athenos and the integration of this business in Emmi Roth USA also offers growth potential due to the complementary distribution channels. In addition to a strong retail business, Emmi Roth USA has established close customer relationships in the food service area.

Furthermore, the export business with Swiss cheese should also benefit from strengthening the sales base and thus continue the positive development of recent years. At the same time, Athenos can benefit from the marketing expertise of Emmi Roth USA and address new consumers through digital marketing and social media.

The acquisition is subject to approval by the US supervisory authorities.

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The purchase price of US$118 million (approximately €100 million), on a cash-free and debt-free basis, was paid in cash at closing.

Carolina Aseptic develops, manufactures, packages, and distributes aseptic shelf-stable food products and beverages out of a purpose-built facility in Troy, North Carolina. Nearby, Carolina Dairy manufactures, packages, and distributes refrigerated yogurt in spouted pouches in Biscoe, North Carolina. The acquisition of these businesses will better position Saputo to capture the growing demand for aseptic protein beverages and nutritional snacks, the company says.

“This investment aims to reinforce the strength of Saputo’s core business by increasing our capacity to manufacture and distribute products in the rapidly growing aseptic beverage and food categories, as well as the nutritional snacks space,” says Lino Saputo, chair of the board and CEO at Saputo.

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GlenOaks’ product offering includes six different flavours of its popular drinkable yogurt products that are made with fruit purée and fresh California dairy. GlenOaks drinkable yogurt contains 3.5 billion probiotic cultures per serving and have been enjoyed by health-conscious customers for generations.

“We are very excited to welcome GlenOaks Farms into the Lifeway family, as it will further solidify our strong position in California and the Western US,” commented Julie Smolyansky, Lifeway’s president and chief executive officer. “Their drinkable yogurt is an incredible strategic complement to our kefir and will help expand our presence in key retail partners in the West, which is a crucial area of growth. This acquisition unlocks an adjacent health-oriented consumer and stays true to our core mission of supporting the gut health, immunity and mental wellbeing of our customers. We look forward to further developing the robust California market and exploring opportunities to expand GlenOaks nationwide.”

GlenOaks probiotic drinkable yogurt is both strategically aligned and extremely compatible with the Lifeway brand ethos and health-driven mission.

Lifeway says it sees a strong potential for growth of the GlenOaks product by integrating it into the Lifeway brand and expanding distribution with new retail opportunities.

The transaction is expected to close in August 2021 for a purchase price of $5.8 million in cash, subject to certain adjustment conditions and approvals.

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With the acquisition, the logistics business of the Theo Müller Group comprises around 22,000 employees, 5,500 vehicles and two million square metres of storage space.

The sales contribution of the logistics division to the total sales of the Theo Müller group of companies will thus double to around €2 billion.

“GreenWhiteStar and the Culina Group are two companies that complement each other perfectly. Both are organizations with similar business ideas, which have a good reputation in the industry. A connection between the two companies will benefit both our employees and our customers,” says Thomas van Mourik, CEO of the Culina Group.

With the purchase, Willliam Stobart, former executive chairman of GreenWhiteStar, will be appointed as deputy CEO of the Culina Group.

“Dairy products represent the core of our business today and will continue to do so in the future. However, the successful further development of our delicatessen business and our logistics division are also important cornerstones for the profitable growth of the Theo Müller Group and support diversification. With the acquisition of GreenWhiteStar, we’re taking a big step in this direction. The group of companies will thus exceed the sales threshold of €7 billion for the first time,” says Marcus Almeling, chief financial officer of the Theo Müller group.

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Nils van Dam, Milcobel CEO (pictured) says: “Our takeover of Kaasbrik will enable us to further strengthen our position as a significant player on the global mozzarella market. Milcobel and Kaasbrik complement one another extremely well. Mozzarella is a difficult high-quality product that requires the necessary expertise, for which we have found an ideal partner in Kaasbrik.”

Francis Relaes, managing director of the Milcobel dairy premium ongredients business, adds: “Kaasbrik enables us to further optimise our degree of service and customer orientation. Interesting synergies are being created regarding export markets such as Asia, where mozzarella consumption is on the rise and where Milcobel has already built up a strong market position during the past several years.”

Milcobel is the main Belgian dairy cooperative. The Milcobel Group has six branches in Belgium and France. In 2020, the company processed 1.8 billion litres of milk into dairy products such as cheese, butter, milk powder, ice cream, milk drinks, cream and whey. In addition to its own brands (including Brugge Cheese & butter, Nazareth, Inza, Inco, Binco Incolac) and private label consumer products for retailers, Milcobel produces raw materials and ingredients for the food industry (including mozzarella). Milcobel has been active in the mozzarella business for more than 20 years.

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Both companies hold strong positions in different segments of the Russian dairy market. This strategic transaction accelerates Ehrmann’s position in Russia and allows FrieslandCampina to focus on consumer markets elsewhere.

After completion of the transaction, Ehrmann will be the 100% owner of Campina with its 650 employees and all assets and contractual obligations. Ehrmann will manage the dairy production in Stupino (Moscow region), and develop the established brands Fruttis and Nezhny. Christian Ehrmann, CEO at Ehrmann SE says: “This acquisition reflects Ehrmann’s strategy of growing its market share in Russia with locally produced, strong brands.”

This agreement is subject to approval of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Russian Federation, as well as authorities in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Belarus. Closing of the transaction is expected at the end of June.

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Ferenc Tahy was CFO and commercial director at Andechser Molkerei Scheitz previously, and for several years in leading sales positions at Lactalis Deutschland and the cheese dairy Champignon. Stegmann recently achieved sales of around €120 million, with 200 employees at the Kempten and Altusried locations.

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The new company will be an addition to Synergy, Carbery’s international flavours business. Acquiring Innova brings a new range of savoury solutions to customers who partner with Synergy on the creation and growth of their product portfolios. Known in the US for their sweet flavours, extracts and essences, this strategic purchase expands the savoury capabilities of Synergy US and complements Synergy’s offerings worldwide.

“Our primary purpose is to add value for our farmer shareholders”, comments TJ Sullivan, chairman of Carbery Group. “Through a series of acquisitions in the UK, the USA, Europe, South America and Asia, we have successfully built Synergy, our international flavours business. This new acquisition brings new opportunities with customers and markets that will strengthen the returns across our whole business.”

This acquisition is another significant business development in the last 12 months, with the company also seeing the opening of their expanded cheese facility towards the end of 2020, and a diversification into producing mozzarella for international markets.

Jason Hawkins, CEO of Carbery Group, commented: “Our business was resilient throughout Covid-19, Brexit and the challenges of the last few years. Stability is important for us, but we also need to consider strategic opportunities for us to grow, to strengthen our offerings for our customers and maximize what we can deliver for our shareholders. Acquiring Innova Flavors will enhance our business in the US, but also in Asia and Central and South America. The deal will bring opportunities right across our platforms of Dairy, Taste and Nutrition.”

Innova supplies customised savoury flavours and ingredients to customers around the world. Their manufacturing facilities are based in the Chicago area, as is the HQ of Synergy US.

“This acquisition offers significant benefits to Synergy customers by providing them access to a proven range of flavours to meet the growing demand for natural flavorings and savoury ingredients, and these products complement Synergy’s current offerings”, comments Rod Sowders, president and CEO of Synergy Flavors Americas. “In addition, our global footprint and history of investment in acquisitions will allow Innova customers to benefit from the deep flavour expertise and global reach of our organisation.”

For more information on Carbery Group, visit: carbery.com.

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