Givaudan closely collaborates with food, beverage, consumer product and fragrance partners. Givaudan’s comprehensive knowledge of local flavours, extensive global footprint and strategic insights enable close partnerships with customers wherever they may be.
Gilles Andrier, CEO of Givaudan, said: “Expanding our offering in naturals is a key priority for Givaudan in the context of our 2020 strategy. Vika’s products, technologies and talent will strengthen our existing capabilities and our ability to develop new taste solutions. We are delighted to welcome Vika’s employees to our Company and are confident that their industry expertise will accelerate Givaudan’s position with existing and new customers.”
Vika offers a range of natural dairy ingredients, fonds and stocks, and meat and plant based extracts to customers in the food and beverage industry.
Vida’s dairy ingredients are produced for savoury applications like biscuits, crisps, sauces, pizza and pasta and convenience foods. Vika is renowned for using sustainable technologies and ingredients in the production of cheese powder, EMC, blending and processed cheeses.
While terms of the deal have not been disclosed, Vika’s business would have represented approximately €64 million of incremental sales to Givaudan’s results in 2016 on a pro forma basis.
Givaudan plans to fund the transaction from existing resources. The planned acquisition remains subject to formal approvals from the relevant antitrust authorities. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2017.
Mauricio Graber, President of Givaudan’s Flavour Division, said: “Savoury and dairy are two categories where consumers feel all natural ingredients are important and it is our aim to keep strengthening our offering in these sectors. We look forward to leveraging Vika’s expertise, which will complement our own heritage and knowledge in extraction, fermentation and concentration of natural ingredients, opening up new market opportunities for both companies.”