Market

The Korean fashion, beauty and living sector business Shinsegae International has acquired a 100% stake in Swiss Perfection Montreux, a high-end cosmetics brand based in Switzerland.

Following in the footsteps of Unilever, Beyond Meat and Impossible Food, Findus is now also launching its own Green Cuisine line of vegetarian burgers, meatballs and sausages with a similar taste to meat but aimed at more environmentally conscious consumers.

Whether gluten-free, preservative-free, sugar-free or high in fibre, protein or calcium, there’s no stopping the rise of the free-from and rich-in product trends that continue to dominate consumers’ purchasing choices and fuel a steady stream of new offerings from companies.

Nespresso has announced an investment of CHF 160 million to expand its production centre in Romont, Switzerland with the addition of a second production hall.

Sofidel, the tissue paper group known for the Regina brand, ranked 3rd amongst Italian companies (11th overall) in the Italy RepTrak® ranking, the annual survey that measures companies’ reputation among Italian consumers, behind the big names in the automotive and food industries Ferrari and Ferrero.

With the aim of consolidating its existing Italian network of 660 stores, Lidl is launching an investment plan for Italy worth €400 million on top of the €2 billion invested over the last six years.

Sorgente Valcimoliana, the Cimolais, Pordenone-based company that sells bottled water under the Dolomia brand, officially opened its new bottling plant dedicated to returnable glass bottles (RGBs) on 3 July in the presence of the regional authorities.

US agribusiness giant Cargill is partnering with an Indian manufacturer to launch its first chocolate manufacturing operation in Asia aimed at bakery and confectionery customers.

Paul Masson brandy and New Zealand-based Nobilo wines are the two brands divested by Constellation Brands as part of the company’s reorganisation plan aimed at premiumizing its portfolio and focusing on fast-growing high-end brands.

Morato Pane, a Vicenza-based company operating in the packaged bakery goods market, recently completed two acquisitions concurrently.

Dog Heroes is a Lombardy-based startup that was only launched last November but has already raised a €400,000 funding round for the development of its business, which aims to spark a health revolution in the dog food market (a market that in Italy is worth over €1 billion).

Livekindly co., a company spearheading a movement to build a more sustainable future set up in early 2020 with a funding round of $200 million, has acquired the Oumph! brand from Swedish company Food for Progress.

Upfield Group is planning to invest €50 million in a new Food Science Centre in Wageningen, Netherlands.

The Philippine company Liwayway Food, which produces snacks under the Oishi brand, has begun work on a new factory in the Qibray district of Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Sweden’s Lantmännen Unibake, the second largest bakery group in Europe, has taken over the production activities of French Bakery Company located in Drammen, Norway.

The US food & beverage brand Turkey Hill has announced a significant expansion of its ice cream division through the acquisition of the Arkansas production facility of Yarnell Ice Cream, a subsidiary of Schulze & Burch Biscuit Company.

Just Eat Takeaway.com has agreed to acquire American Grubhub for $7.3 billion, creating the largest food delivery service outside of China and connecting partner restaurants with customers in 25 countries.

In a $530 million deal, Denmark’s Chr. Hansen has acquired Hansen, Wisconsin-based probiotics manufacturer UAS Laboratories.

The US bottled water market expanded to reach a total of 54.6 billion litres in 2019, surpassing the 52.3 billion litres of 2018 (+3.6%).

UK-based dairy group Meadow Foods is investing £4 million in a new facility for the production of plant-based milk alternatives including creams, yoghurts and custard, as well as oat, rice and coconut-based drinks.