A landmark deal shakes up the frozen bakery market: Vandemoortele, the European family-owned food group, announced the acquisition of Délifrance, Europe’s leading producer of frozen bakery products with an annual turnover of around EUR 930 million.
The combination of the two companies will create a global giant with a turnover of around EUR 2.4 billion, offering a complete range of high-quality bakery products, from croissants to Danish pastries, from artisan bread to Italian focaccia.
“We are delighted to welcome Délifrance to the Vandemoortele family,” said Jean Vandemoortele, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Vandemoortele Group, emphasising the “historical partnership” and the “strong commonality of cultures and experience”.
Christoph Büren, President of VIVESCIA, said the transaction was in line with the group’s transformation strategy, creating the conditions for a ‘valuable long-term partnership’ with Vandemoortele.
Yvon Guerin, CEO of the Vandemoortele Group, expressed respect for Délifrance’s ‘heritage and expertise’ and foresaw ‘powerful synergies’ in terms of growth, customer service and innovation.
Robert O’Boyle, Délifrance’s CEO, emphasised the company’s ‘transformation’ over the past four years, stating that the merger with Vandemoortele will allow ‘investing together’ to support future growth. The deal, which is subject to customary closing conditions and approval by the relevant authorities, is expected to close by the end of 2025.
In France, frozen products accounted for 24% of all cakes and other sweet bakery products in 2021.
The sector is expected to grow by 7% over the next two years ( = a lot).
One of the group’s fiercest competitors will be Spain’s Europastry (with an annual turnover of €1.35 billion in 2023) and with customers of the calibre of Starbucks, Pret a Manger and Manolo Bakes.
