USA – Food and beverage ingredients provider, Ingredion has announced that it has acquired the US based potato and tapioca starches producer, Western Polymer for an undisclosed sum.

According to the company, the deal expands its capacity in providing food and beverage industry customers with higher-value specialty ingredients.

The transaction which also involves the operations of Western Polymer will see Ingredion expand Company’s potato starch manufacturing capacity, will see the company broaden its capabilities in higher-value specialty ingredients business and customer base.

The Washington based Western Polymer produces native and modified potato starches for food and industrial applications and modified tapioca starch for industrial applications.

It operates three U.S. manufacturing locations in Moses Lake, Washington; Fort Fairfield, Maine; and Grand Forks, North Dakota.

“This next phase of growth is consistent with other actions we’ve taken to strengthen our specialties business and deliver long-term value for our shareholders,” said Jim Zallie, Ingredion’s president and chief executive officer.

“This acquisition expands our higher-value specialty ingredients business, which is central to Ingredion’s growth strategy.

We have tremendous respect for the culture and business that Western Polymer has built, and we look forward to the future opportunities that we will create together.”

Speaking on the development, Lynn Townsend-White, president and chief executive officer of Western Polymer said: “We’re excited to leverage the strengths of Western Polymer and Ingredion to continue developing high-quality ingredients that align with consumer trends and customers’ needs.

“By coming together now, this enables even greater reach for our ingredients and positions the business for continued growth.”

According to Ingredion, starch-based texturizer ingredients form the foundation of its texture innovation portfolio and account for approximately US$1 billion in total sales.

The trends seen driving the specialty ingredient portfolio include texture, clean label, plant-based proteins, sugar reduction and food system development.

The company has invested US$140 million in two processing plants, one in Nebraska to make plant-based protein isolates and another in Saskatchewan where the company has entered into a joint venture with Verdient Foods, Inc.