Europe Snacks acquires Burts Snacks to accelerate its growth in the UK
Europe Snacks, a leading European producer of savoury snacks for third party brands, announces the acquisition of 100% of Burts Snacks. This operation enables Europe Snacks to accelerate its growth in Europe’s largest snacking market.
Supported by Apax Partners, Europe Snacks entered the UK market with the acquisition of Kolak Snack Foods in 2016. The acquisition of Burts, which should be finalized in March 2023, represents a further step in expanding the group’s presence in the UK, with the product portfolio being highly complementary.
The combination of the two companies in the UK will enable the Group to better serve existing clients and unlock growth through a wider offer of delicious snacking products and a market leading innovation pipeline. Europe Snacks and Burts combined manufacturing and supply chains will facilitate the Group to further invest in additional capacity and service excellence.
Burts will continue to operate from its two manufacturing facilities in Plymouth and Leicester, led by current Managing Director, Dave McNulty.
Etienne Lecomte, CEO of Europe Snacks, said: “Within a highly uncertain economic context, it is key to reach a size that allows us to keep investing in our people and in our factories. Thanks to the trust of our shareholders, it has been made possible and I am very proud to welcome the Burts team to the group.”
Jitu Patel, Chairman of Burts, commented: “Burts provides high quality snacking and has a strong track record of delivering growth without ever compromising on quality. Since investing in the company back in 2006, it has been a very enjoyable and impressive journey. I have a huge admiration for Europe Snacks: I am convinced this acquisition will open up new opportunities, as both businesses are complementary to each other and share deep common values. It has been an honour to work with the Burts Family over the years and I would like to take this opportunity to wish the combined company every success in the years ahead."
Bruno Candelier, Partner at Apax, added: “Since our initial investment in Europe Snacks, we have continuously supported the company and its management team to position itself at the forefront of innovation and scale its business, notably in the UK with the transformational acquisition of Kolak in 2016. The acquisition of Burts is fully in line with the roadmap set when we originally invested.”
About Europe Snacks
Founded in France in 1990, Europe Snacks is a leading European producer of savoury snacks for third party brands. It has significantly gained in scale over the past few years through organic growth and M&A, notably through the acquisition of Kolak Snack Foods in 2016 (UK) and Grupo Ibersnacks in 2018 (Spain).
About Burts Snacks
Founded in the UK in 1995, Burts is a high quality premium snacking manufacturer, with strong track record of delivering growth especially in the hand-cooked crisps segment.
About Apax Partners
Apax Partners is one of the leading private equity firms in Europe. With 50 years of experience, Apax Partners works with companies over the long term to make them leaders in their sector. The funds managed and advised by Apax Partners amount to over €5 billion. These funds invest in high-growth SMEs and SMIs in four sectors of specialisation: Tech & Telecom, Services, Health and Consumer Goods.
Apax Partners sas, based in Paris (www.apax.fr), and Apax Partners LLP, based in London (www.apax.com), have a common history but are two independent firms.
