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GPF Capital-backed Natural Fruit Company acquires Frugarva

GPF Capital has closed a private equity investment in Frugarva by integrating the Spanish business into its citrus holding The Natural Fruit Company. The founding and managing family of Frugarva joins in this way the sectorial consolidation project of one of the European leaders and continues as a shareholder in The Natural Fruit Company.

 
Frugarva, founded in Murcia in 1965, is one of the leading companies in Spain in the production, processing and distribution of lemons and pomegranates. With its 51,000 sq m facilities located in Alhama (Murcia) and thanks to its more than 400 workers, Frugarva serves more than 70 thousand tons of fruit per year to its national and international customers. Its turnover is more than EUR50 million per year, of which exports represent more than 90 per cent of the total.
 
With the integration of Frugarva into The Natural Fruit Company, the combined group now exceeds 200 million euros in turnover and maintains its commitment to a total continuity of the current management team that will help to bring together a unique knowledge of the sector and consolidate the group’s position as a leader in the citrus fruit market in Spain and Europe. The key people in charge of Frugarva value this movement positively:
 
“We are thrilled to take this step and to have the opportunity to join an exciting and growing project such as The Natural Fruit Company. Together we are one of the undisputed leaders in the European citrus sector with production, distribution and service capacities that are unique in Europe. This commitment will help us to continue offering a top quality, tailor-made service to each one of our clients throughout the year.”
 
Together, GPF Capital and the management teams of The Natural Fruit Company and Frugarva will continue to develop the strategic plan initiated a year ago by the group, the pillars of which are: (i) to maintain, reinforce and expand the variety of quality products and services offered to its clients in Europe and (ii) to give solidity to the development of a growth plan that combines the vertical integration of the business, the strengthening of the quality and the international expansion.
 
The first steps of this plan have already materialised during this turbulent year 2020 with the opening of a logistics centre in France which has allowed to increase the logistic capacities of the group as well as with the opening of a new plant in Valencia in which an investment of more than EUR25 million has been made, thus increasing the productive capacity of the group to undertake a strong growth in the next years.
 
The bolt-on acquisition of Frugarva comes 11 months after GPF Capital integrated Fruxeresa and Frutas Naturales into the citrus holding The Natural Fruit Company.
 
Frugarva has had A&G as financial advisor and Cuatrecasas as a legal advisor, while The Natural Fruit Company has been advised by Uría Menéndez, KPMG and Garrigues.
 

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