In a deal that would create a major global leader in the healthy snack food space, the Bel Group and MOM Group’s management team have agreed to exclusive negotiations to acquire a majority stake in MOM Group from LBO France.
“Our partnership with Bel will help create a French headquartered, healthy snack-food company that will be uniquely positioned and supported by international brands,” said Michel Larroche, CEO, MOM Group in a recent press release.
Bel Group is the world’s leader in single serve cheese snacks with a brand portfolio that includes The Laughing Cow ®, Kiri®, Mini Babybel® Leerdammer®, and Boursin®, growing over the past 150 years to an international scale with sales in 130 countries.
Anchored by its Materne and Mont Blanc brands in France, the MOM Group has seen significant growth in France and the U.S. from its GoGosqueeZ and Pom’Potes fruit squeezer brands. Over the past five years, the group has doubled in size, reaching sales of US$400 million in 2015.
Antoine Fiévet, Fromageries Bel Chairman and CEO makes note of the potential growth that can come from the completion of the deal.
“The perfectly complementary nature of the product ranges is ideal for meeting growing consumer expectations and the nutritional challenges facing many, many countries,” says Fiévet. “Focusing the teams on a limited number of brands with strong international potential, and combining the industrial expertise and innovative capabilities of Bel and MOM creates an extraordinary foundation for growth.”
Sales of snack foods account for 40% of the $370 billion total U.S. packaged food market. Additionally, Food Navigator reports that growth of sales for the healthy snack food category will outpace growth for the overall food and beverage market by 4.7% according to data from the fall 2015 Simmons National Consumer Study and Packaged Facts’ National Consumer Survey. Estimates stand that growth in the healthy snack category will exceed 5% in 2016 with sales topping $20.3 billion for the year, eventually reaching sales of $25.4 billion by 2020.
“It’s a financial, strategic and economic slam-dunk,” says Robert Daussun, CEO of LBO France, commenting on the deal. “MOM will have the human resources and the local avenues needed to accelerate its growth, with the new group becoming the flagship French company in the global snack food sector.”
The deal, which would be financed through Bel’s existing funds and additional debt, will be submitted to the labor bodies attached to both companies and to anti-trust regulatory bodies for approval before its expected closing before the end of the year.
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Lynda Kiernan