Arla Foods Ingredients has signed an agreement to acquire the Whey Nutrition division of Volac’s business through a purchase of the shares.
The shares included Volac Whey Nutrition Holdings Ltd and its subsidiaries, Volac Whey Nutrition Limited and Volac Renewable Energy Limited.
The UK-based Volac group specialises in turning whey into ingredients for sports nutrition, with by-products being sold for food and animal nutrition.
Completion of the transaction is expected later this year, subject to required regulatory approvals.
The acquisition is set to play a “significant role” in Arla Foods Ingredients’ future plans. It envisions the Felinfach site in Wales as a global production hub and a “cornerstone of an enhanced product offering” in the performance, health and food sectors.
Arla Foods
Group vice president and managing director at Arla Foods Ingredients, Luis Cubel said:
“This brings together two complementary offerings in a growing and increasingly international space for whey products. Volac is a pioneer in the use of whey protein for performance nutrition and has a wealth of expertise.
“It shares our commitment to helping companies worldwide harness the full potential of whey, and we’re hugely excited about the opportunities that lie ahead,” Cubel added.
For Volac, this agreement represents a step in its evolution as a family business and provides the “springboard” for the optimal development of the Whey Nutrition business, as well as Volac’s remaining Animal Nutrition business.
Joint owner of Volac, James Neville, said that the whey processing began at the Felinfach site more than 30-years-ago, and the company could not be “prouder” of everything that has been achieved since then.
Nevile added that it was “crucial” for the company to partner with the “right values and expertise” and that Arla Foods Ingredients has the “ambition and the knowledge” to take the business to the next level.