Associated British Foods is looking to boost the international sales of UK organic cereal business Jordans, in which the group has bought a 20% stake.

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ABF, which announced its investment into Jordans this morning (14 September), said it would look to drive the Jordans brand overseas.


Jordans already has a presence in over 20 countries outside the UK but ABF, with its global footprint, believes there is further potential.


“We’ve got distribution on a much more international business and it is something that we are going to explore vigorously,” an ABF spokesman told just-food.


Neither side would reveal the financial details surrounding ABF’s investment. However, ABF will take a seat on the Jordans board with Bill and David Jordan, who founded the business in the 1970s, still running the company.

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“We’re going to be working pretty much as usual,” a Jordans spokesperson said. “[ABF] will hopefully give us better distribution potential and further backing. The company has come a long way but it is a very competitive market at the moment.”


ABF refused to be drawn on whether it plans to deepen its investment into Jordans in the future. “At the moment, it is as it is – a 20% stake,” the ABF spokesman said. “We’ll see where it goes.”


ABF’s grocery business, which also includes Twinings tea and Kingsmill bread, has suffered in recent months due in part to rising commodity costs.


Clive Black, an industry analyst at Shore Capital, said ABF’s investment in Jordans added to the “good balance” of the business.


“ABF has built up a strong proprietary brand portfolio in a quite a sensible way,” Black said. “They have got Twinings, Ovaltine, more recently Patak’s and the investment in Jordans, presumably on the basis that they want to nudge that forward in the future, makes eminent sense to us.


“We like the balance of the business and its diversification. ABF has a strong presence in ingredients, it has proprietary brands – which give it a relationship with the consumer – and not a strong over-dependence on own-label.”