On August 2, the natural and organic food company Hain Celestial Group announced two new developments to expand the distribution of its brands throughout Europe, as part of the company's international growth strategy. The company has now completed its previously-announced joint venture with the Spanish snack company Grupo Siro. Hain Celestial will share in the profits of the joint venture as well as receive licensing fees for its proprietary production equipment. In addition, reflecting Hain Celestial's expansion of Terra Chips in Europe, the company's Fruit Chips business has been renamed Terra Chips BV, and has recently introduced six new Terra products, which are being produced in the Dutch company's facility and distributed throughout Europe. These new items, which include Frites, Yukons and Reds, have been selected due to their success in the American market. Benjie Brecher, senior vice president of international operations for Hain Celestial, said, "We are pleased to be moving ahead rapidly with Grupo Siro and are excited by the market potential for expanding into Spain and Portugal through our joint venture. We are also leveraging new opportunities for our brand throughout Europe, with Terra Chips B.V. as a base to manufacture our chips in Europe. We anticipate tremendous success in Europe by capitalising on the significant growth of Terra Chips in the U.S. and the penetration already achieved in Europe, with the limited distribution we currently have."
