NETHERLANDS – Barentz, a leading provider of ingredients to the food and beverage industry, has received an investment from European private equity firm, Cinven.
Barentz said the investment, whose financial terms were not disclosed, will support the company’s expansion plans in order to serve the structurally growing market on a global scale.
The company already has active production facilities in Europe, North America and Asia, providing value-added technical support including pre-mixing, blending, ingredient formulation and ingredient testing.
Hidde van der Wal, CEO of Barentz, said: “We are delighted to be working with Cinven on the next phase of our growth. The Cinven team has really impressed us with their understanding of our market and their strong track record of growing businesses internationally.
“In particular, their investment and support for our business strategy will enable us to expand our operations into new geographic markets, including through acquisition, and will ensure we have the right infrastructure to achieve this.”
Ben Osnabrug, partner at Cinven, commented: “Barentz has a strong presence in a structurally growing market.
“The Cinven team knows the speciality distribution sector well, with the key trends driving the growth of the food and life sciences ingredients market including a shift towards natural ingredients, increased demand for customised formulations, and a growing share of manufacturers using distributors to drive market access and to improve efficiencies.
“Cinven’s investment in Barentz resulted from a combination of our detailed sub-sector approach within Business Services, and our regional network in the Netherlands, and we are delighted to invest in this primary opportunity.
“In particular, Barentz has an excellent management team whom we can back to pursue both organic and buy and build growth.”
As part of its recent expansions, Barentz formed a joint venture with South Africa headquartered raw materials supplier SK Chemtrade Services in a move aimed at giving the company a quicker access to the southern Africa market.
In June this year, the company formed a joint venture with Dutch ingredients company, TasteStrik aimed at developing new ideas and innovative solutions for food and beverage manufacturers in the European market.
Last year, Barentz formed a Brazilian joint venture with Brazilian ingredients distributor, Tovani Benzaquen, expanding its presence in Latin America.
The company recently acquired Finland-based Casmo Oy, a specialized distributor of casings, smoke condensates and flavors for the meat industry.
