Ninth acquisition by Frutarom this year
Frutarom strengthens its position as a leading global player in citrus with the acquisition of Scandia Citrus (Florida, USA)
Frutarom, one of the world's 10 largest companies in the field of flavours and specialty fine ingredients, has announced the acquisition of the business operations and assets of Scandia Citrus of Florida, USA, which specialises in the research and development, manufacture, and sales and marketing of specialty solutions in the field of citrus for leading global customers in the flavour, food and beverages markets, for approximately $6 million.
Scandia's sales in 2014 totalled approximately $8 million. The transaction was completed upon the signing of the agreement and financed through bank debt.
This acquisition joins that of CitraSource last year, which also specialises in citrus and whose production facilities and development labs are also situated in Florida, not far from those of Scandia. Scandia's extensive knowledge in citrus, R&D and marketing capabilities, and its ingenuity, which includes a unique technology for the molecular distillation of citrus oils, combined with Frutarom's experience, know-how, capabilities and pool of customers in this field — which expanded significantly following the acquisition of CitraSource last year — will enable Frutarom to further strengthen its centre of excellence in Florida in the field of citrus and to provide its customers innovative added-value products and comprehensive solutions matching their unique requirements.
Scandia also has global purchasing abilities in the field of citrus from specialty crop growing and supply sources, and combining these with Frutarom's capabilities will further reinforce Frutarom's position as a leading player in the research and development, manufacture and sales of specialty citrus products, which constitute an important raw material in the development and production of many flavours and food and beverage products.
Frutarom will work towards fully capitalising on the many cross-selling opportunities arising from the acquisition along with combining all of Scandia's activity at its existing site in Florida, USA, while attaining maximal savings and efficiency.
The company's executives, Mr Wesley Beck and Dr Robert Kryger, who bring rich experience in the fields of R&D, purchasing and marketing, along with excellent connections in the global citrus market, will continue supporting the operations and, together with Mr Ben Yehuda and Mr Aulick, who continue managing the activity of CitraSource, will help Frutarom continue to grow and deepen its global activity in the field of citrus.
Ori Yehudai, President and CEO of Frutarom Group, said: 'Frutarom got its start in the cultivation and extracting of citrus in Israel. Today, 82 years after Frutarom was founded, citrus still makes up a large and important part of our activity and constitutes one of our competitive advantages. The improved back integration brought about with the acquisition of CitraSource last year will now be further reinforced with the acquisition of Scandia and help us continue establishing our position as a global leader in the citrus market while enhancing our offerings of innovative products and the service we provide our customers.
'The acquisition of Scandia provides Frutarom advanced R&D capabilities, unique technology, global purchasing capabilities with emphasis on North, Central and South America, and a leading and experienced management team, and it further enhances our presence in Florida – one of the worldwide centers for citrus. The acquisition represents another milestone is the realisation of the strategy for both expanding in the United States and broadening our portfolio of natural products in response to market trends and the needs of our customers in the flavours and food and beverages market.'
'The acquisition of Scandia joins the eight acquisitions completed since the beginning of the year and supports the continuing positioning of Frutarom as a leading player in the global market for flavours and specialty fine ingredients. We will continue implementing our rapid and profitable growth strategy, and our strong pipeline of acquisitions will permit the continued realisation and execution of further strategic acquisitions of companies and operations in our fields of activity,' he concluded.
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