The acquisition includes Findus’ European businesses in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, France, Spain, and Belgium as well as intellectual property and the rights to the Findus, Lutosa and La Cocinera brands. This covers a total of around 1,500 employees and six manufacturing plants. The sale was valued at around €700m.
Nomad's chief executive officer, Stéfan Descheemaeker, said the complementary nature of the combined brands would enhance the company’s scale and competitive offering. "The Birdseye, Iglo, and Findus brands have played key roles in defining the frozen food category over the past decades, and together will be better positioned to continue bringing fresh and 'better-for-you' meal options to consumers across Europe."
UK fish processing company Young’s Seafood was excluded from the deal and will continue to be backed by its existing group of investors under a new holding company entitled Young’s Seafood International Holdings.
James Hill, chief executive of the newly created holding company said: “With the Findus transaction now behind us, we shall redouble our drive for improvement in Young’s, focussing on our customers, our market share and our processing efficiency.”
Earlier this year Nomad completed a deal to acquire Europe’s largest frozen foods business Iglo Group for €2.6bn (£1.9bn), while the Findus transaction means that it now employs over 4,300 people in 15 countries.