FDBusiness.com

Dairy co-operative Arla Foods has agreed to sell its packaging subsidiary Danapak Flexibles to Austria-based Schur Flexibles Group for an undisclosed price. The takeover is expected to be completed by July 1st 2014, subject to approval by the relevant competition authorities.

Danapak Flexibles is a Denmark-based supplier of high-quality packaging for companies in the pharma, dairy, and food industries. Founded in 1955 by the Danish Dairy Board, the business has since been owned by several companies in various constellations, also partly owned by Arla.

In 2009, Arla took over the full ownership of the subsidiary with intentions to prepare the company for a sale to the right buyer within the packaging industry. Meanwhile, in all significant matters, Danapak Flexibles has continued to operate as a stand-alone business. Following years of negative results, Danapak Flexibles has made a successful ‘turn around’ in recent years.

An agreement has now been reached between Arla and the packaging company Schur Flexibles Group in Austria for the sale of Danapak Flexibles.

“We believe this is a ‘win-win’ situation for all parties involved – for Danapak, for Schur Flexibles and for Arla,” says vice-CEO in Arla Foods, Povl Krogsgaard. “Over the past several years Arla has sold off subsidiaries that do not have a direct link to dairy production in order to focus on our core business. Since it is not within Arla’s core business to produce packaging, we are no longer the right owner of Danapak, who will be better suited under new ownership that can take the company to the next level in its future development.”