GREENYARD takes majority stake in GELAGRI BRETAGNE

Atria Sweden has acquired a 25% minority interest in Cookin Food Sweden AB from its parent company, Bite Delight AB. The strategic rationale for the transaction is rooted in Atria’s "TOGETHER 2030" strategy, specifically targeting the convenience food sector as a key growth driver. This investment provides Atria with a strategic foothold in premium convenience categories like travel services and craftsmanship-driven retail food solutions. Crucially, the agreement includes a call option for Atria to acquire the remaining shares of Bite Delight AB after 2028, establishing a clear roadmap for eventual full integration. The partnership leverages Cookin Food's culinary expertise and Atria's industrial strength to accelerate the development of the convenience food business in Sweden. This transaction represents a validation of Cookin Food’s artisanal production model while allowing Atria to diversify its portfolio into high-margin, fresh-daily product segments.

Unilever has entered into a definitive agreement to merge its global food business with McCormick & Company. This transformative transaction values the Unilever Food division at an enterprise value of approximately $44.8 billion. Under the terms of the deal, Unilever will receive $15.7 billion in cash and a 9.9% equity stake in the combined entity, which it intends to divest gradually. Post-transaction, Unilever’s shareholders will own 55.1% of the new group, while McCormick’s existing shareholders will hold 35%. The strategic rationale for the deal is to create a world leader in flavors and condiments with a combined revenue of approximately $20 billion (2025 figures). For Unilever, the move represents a decisive step in its strategic refocusing toward high-growth beauty, wellbeing, and personal care segments, following the prior spin-off of its ice cream division. The combined entity will operate under the McCormick name, maintaining its global headquarters in Maryland and establishing an international headquarters in the Netherlands with a dual listing in New York and Europe. The merger is expected to generate $600 million in annual cost synergies by the third year.

Nasta Pet Food acquired 100% of the shares of FirstMate Pet Foods from its founder and partner. This transatlantic consolidation aims to establish the acquirer as a major player in the North American market, the world's largest pet food region. The acquisition was funded through a major EUR118 million unitranche refinancing package provided by an international debt fund. This financing also serves to retire existing bank debt and provides a confirmed, undrawn CAPEX line for future growth. The strategic rationale focuses on combining European veterinary expertise with North American manufacturing capabilities and digital distribution networks. Following the integration, the new group employs 250 people and aims for a consolidated turnover of EUR200 million in 2026.

Refresco has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of SunOpta for $6.50 per share in an all-cash transaction. The strategic rationale for the deal is to significantly bolster Refresco’s position in the fast-growing North American plant-based beverage market, utilizing SunOpta’s specialized aseptic manufacturing footprint as a platform for regional expansion. The acquisition is highly complementary, filling geographic gaps in Refresco’s US operations while adding advanced R&D and formulation capabilities in the plant-based milk and broth categories. Despite a temporary slowdown in US retail unit sales, the deal prioritizes SunOpta’s exceptional momentum in the foodservice channel, where it supplies eight of the top ten North American coffee chains. The transaction allows for faster operational remediation and margin normalization under private ownership, shielding the business from public-market reporting constraints. This move consolidates Refresco's shift toward value-added, less-commoditized beverage models on a global scale.

Friulia has completed a strategic investment in Pintaudi S.r.l., the premium bakery subsidiary of Polo del Gusto (Riccardo Illy). Following the transaction, Polo del Gusto retains control with 63.4% (diluted from 97.5%), while founder retains a 2.5% minority stake. The capital injection is aimed at supporting production volume growth, meeting increasing market demand, and maintaining the high artisanal standards of the brand.

IDAK Food Group entered exclusive negotiations to acquire a majority stake in Onore from Waterland Private Equity and the management team. The transaction creates a diversified European leader in premium frozen food, combining IDAK's strengths in Switzerland and Italy with Onore's leadership in France and the UK. The management of Onore will reinvest in the new structure and continue to lead the division. The deal is expected to close in H1 2026 and represents IDAK's third major acquisition under TowerBrook's ownership.

Keurig Dr Pepper completed the acquisition of JDE Peet’s in April 2026 through a recommended public cash offer, taking effective control of 96.22% of JDE Peet’s outstanding shares and paving the way to full delisting from Euronext Amsterdam. The transaction is structured as an all‑cash, platform‑building move that creates a global coffee powerhouse by combining JDE Peet’s deeply embedded coffee brands and international footprint with Keurig Dr Pepper’s leading single‑serve coffee platform and North American beverage infrastructure. Under the strategic roadmap, Keurig Dr Pepper plans to separate into two independent U.S.‑listed entities: a North American refreshment beverage company and a pure‑play global coffee business, with JDE Peet’s forming the core of the latter. The deal allows Keurig Dr Pepper to consolidate more than a dozen global coffee brands, including Peet’s, Jacobs, L’Or, and Douwe Egberts, under a unified global coffee platform, while JDE Peet’s gains access to Keurig’s installed base and innovation engine in pods and in‑home coffee systems. The combined coffee entity, intended to be led by Rafael Oliveira as CEO, is expected to generate in the mid‑teen‑billion‑dollar range of annual sales and target operational synergies through supply‑chain integration, brand consolidation, and shared back‑office functions.

Illva Saronno Holding, through its subsidiary Disaronno Ingredients, has acquired 100% of Delite S.r.l. The transaction allows Illva to integrate a strong regional distributor in the Emilia-Romagna area into its national network. This deal is part of the strategic project "DIS," which aims to build a unified, capillary distribution organization across Italy by aggregating regional leaders (following the acquisitions of Arbore in Liguria and G&P Center). The sellers include RDM Group and several private individuals.

NewPrinces Group has completed the acquisition of Kraft Heinz's infant food business. The transaction reunites the Plasmon brand with the Ozzano Taro production plant (already owned by Newlat), creating a fully integrated Italian baby food champion. As part of the deal, NewPrinces will continue to manufacture Heinz Baby Food for the UK market under a co-packing agreement at the acquired Latina facility.

Europe Capital Partners VII has acquired a majority stake in ESCA S.r.l. from the founding shareholders. The brothers Giuseppe and Patrizio Patrizi have reinvested to retain a minority stake and will continue in their operational roles (Plant Director and Commercial Director, respectively). The acquisition was financed by a pool of banks led by BCC Banca Iccrea and a private debt tranche provided by Tenax Capital.