US agri-food group JR Simplot has agreed to acquire Belgian potato-processing company Clarebout Potatoes for an undisclosed sum.
The deal, which is expected to be finalised by the end of the year, will see “two market leaders” in the frozen potato products sector join forces, family-owned JR Simplot said in a statement.
Clarebout Potatoes, a family-run business based in Nieuwkerke in western Belgium, specialises in producing frozen potato products for private-label customers.
With five production sites across Europe, the company employs more than 3,000 people. It has clients in the retail, catering and food-manufacturing sectors.
JR Simplot believes the agreement will see the integration of "complementary assets". Combined, the group will have 23 production sites.
In the statement announcing the deal, JR Simplot said the acquisition “provides for the maintenance, and even expansion, of Clarebout Potatoes’ assets – staff and production sites – on the European continent”.
“This is an exciting time for Simplot,” Graham Dugdale, the president of JR Simplot’s Global Food division, added. “We are thrilled about the synergy that Clarebout brings to our business, which not only expands our ability to serve the European market but brings together a pair of family-owned companies who align closely in core values and our commitment to customers, employees and the communities where we operate.”
Simplot Foods, the group’s food division, sells potato products under various brands such as Simplot RoastWorks, Simplot Conquest Fries and Simplot Blue Ribbon Fries.
Jan Clarebout, CEO of Clarebout Potatoes, said: “We could have continued on our own, but the economic reality of the world, and a form of common sense, led us to come together. It is a choice for the future and a sustainable future.”
Besides food processing and food brands, JR Simplot operates across various sectors, including phosphate mining and fertiliser manufacturing.
The company has operations in the US, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Australia, India and China.
