Addo Food Group Sold to LDC
LDC, the UK mid-market private equity investor, has backed the secondary buyout of Addo Food Group, the UK’s leading chilled savoury pastry producer, in a transaction that marks a successful exit for Vision Capital. Details of the transaction are not disclosed.
LDC has invested to support Addo’s growth strategy, which will include further investment in product innovation, expansion into new markets through organic growth and potential acquisitions in adjacent markets. Private investment fund Fullbrook Thorpe Investments LLP invested alongside LDC.
Headquartered in Nottingham, Addo produces more than 287 million packs of chilled savoury pastry products every year. The business manufactures a range of own brand and branded products including sausage rolls, hot pies, slices, pork pies, scotch egg products and quiches, which it supplies to the UK’s leading names in food retail including all the major supermarkets.
Alongside its market-leading ranges of premium pastry products such as Tottle pork pies, Walls savoury pastry and Pork Farms pork pies, the business launched its ‘Too Good to Be’ range of gluten-free sweet and savoury pastry products last year – the first of its kind.
With a trading history that dates back more than 160 years, Addo employs more than 2,500 people and operates across six UK sites in Nottingham, Market Drayton, Spalding, Poole and Shaftesbury. The business was acquired by Vision Capital from Northern Foods in 2007 and traded as Pork Farms Group until 2015 when it changed its name to Addo Food Group. In 2014, the company completed the acquisition of Kerry Food’s £100 million chilled savoury pastry operations. Indeed, the Addo business has doubled in size under the ownership of Vision Capital.
Addo will continue to be led by its existing management team, headed up by group managing director, Chris Peters. Paul Monk will also join Addo as non-executive chairman. He is currently non-executive chairman at Seabrook Crisps and has previous experience with Mars, Golden Wonder, Finsbury Foods, Quorn and Burton Biscuits.
Chris Peters, Group Managing Director at Addo Food Group, says: “We are very excited about our partnership with LDC, to help us further unlock the potential we see in the market. LDC has really bought into our vision and plan, and the whole Addo management team is looking forward to working with our customers, our employees and our investment partners to deliver the next exciting phase of our growth story over the coming months and years.”
Andy Grove, head of New Business at LDC, says: “The UK’s chilled savoury pastry market continues to grow at a steady pace, driven largely by consumer loyalty to much-loved brands and indulgent products. Over its long trading history, Addo has continually demonstrated its ability to evolve and adapt, maintaining its market leading position through a clear focus on product innovation and high quality product ranges.
“In Addo, we’re backing a management team with strength in-depth, led by Chris Peters. We look forward to working alongside them to support the business’ next phase of growth and expansion.”
The deal with Addo represents LDC’s eighth investment of 2017 and forms part of LDC’s ongoing strategy to invest in leading mid-market businesses, backing high calibre management teams.
LDC has a strong track record of backing businesses in the food and drink sector, with current investments including Seabrook Crisps and Vital Ingredients. LDC has pledged to invest £1.2 billion of equity into Britain’s mid-market businesses over the next three years.
