A PRIVATE equity group which already owns Weetabix and Orangina yesterday added seafood firm Young's to its portfolio after agreeing a £1.1 billion takeover.
Lion Capital agreed a deal with Capvest to buy its Foodvest arm, which operates businesses including Young's and sister firm the Seafood Company, which employ around 1,600 people in Scotland.
The deal is thought to be the biggest private equity tr
ansaction in the UK this year.
Foodvest also owns the mainland European business of frozen food producer Findus.
It is one the country's biggest frozen food suppliers, boasting total sales of around £1.1 billion with some 6,000 people in seven countries.
Young's was bought by the group in 2002, and now generates sales of around £300 million. The Seafood Company, which provides chilled and frozen seafood for retailers, was added last year and enjoys sales of around £350m.
Together they employ a combined 2,400 people in Grimsby, with another 1,600 people at five Scottish sites in Livingston, Fraserburgh, Inverness, Stornoway and Annan.
Yesterday a union official called for talks with the new owners as soon as possible.
GMB senior organiser John Wilson described his members' experience of private equity takeovers as bad and cited the closure of a processing factory in Hull when Permira took over Birds Eye.
He added: "GMB want to meet with Lion Capital to talk about the future of Young's Seafood in Grimsby. We want that meeting as soon as possible."
Lion owns a range of consumer businesses – including Weetabix, restaurant chain Wagamama and fizzy drink Orangina. The transaction is expected to be completed in September this year.
There had been reports at the weekend that frozen food giant Iglo Birds Eye was looking to buy all or part of Foodvest.
Foodvest's Findus arm operates in Scandinavia and France. It is separate from the UK Findus operation, whose products are made under a different licence.
Lion Capital partner Lyndon Lea said FoodVest had built "an exciting portfolio of brands that are household names in the UK, Scandinavia and France, and offer attractive growth opportunities given the significant equity of the brands in their core markets".
Foodvest's chairman Seamus FitzPatrick said the group's earnings had increased sixfold over the six and half years of ownership.
He said: "This transaction marks the culmination of our strategy to build the UK seafood business we acquired in 2002 into a leading pan-European food group.
The full article contains 413 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
