Malteurop, world leader in the malt industry, acquires the Italian company Diamalteria, a specialist in production of malt extracts
In a strategic downstream diversification move, the Malteurop Group, the leading malt supplier to the brewing industry, has positioned itself on the market for malt-based food-processing ingredients.
Reims, August 3, 2010 – France’s Malteurop Group, a subsidiary of the agrifood group SICLAE, has purchased 100% of the shares of the Italian company Diamalteria (Darfo – Lombardy), a specialist in the production of malt extracts and malt flours for food-processing markets.
Malt extract is a natural sweetener, flavoring, and colorant. It is used in many branches of the food-processing industry – baking, breakfast cereals, baby foods, confectionery and chocolate, brewing, soft drinks, frozen foods, dietary supplements – as well as in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.
For Malteurop, whose worldwide business activity is currently concentrated on processing barley into malt for the brewing and distilling industries, this strategic operation demonstrates the Group’s objective of diversifying its activities with long-term investments in the highly dynamic market for malt-based food-processing ingredients.
According to Alain Le Floch, Group Managing Director, Malteurop, “Our acquisition of this modern, high-performance company is fully in line with the growth model our group has been following for several years. While continuing to strengthen our position as world leader on the market for malt for brewing and distilling, our ambition is to become a major player in malt-based food-processing ingredients. Our group has many advantages for ensuring success in this new business area – worldwide presence, strong expertise in R&D and raw-materials selection, and recognized know-how in production of quality malts. These advantages will complement the strong product formulation skills developed by Diamalteria and its close relations with its customers in Italy and around the world.”
Mr. Gianni Artoni will continue to direct the company and will serve on its board of directors.
In this self-financed operation, Malteurop was accompanied by De Berti Jacchia Franchini Forlani & Associates (Milan – Italy), KPMG SpA (Brescia – Italy), and Hemadesiclan Conseil (Paris – France).