Silverfleet Capital has acquired Kalle, the global manufacturer of artificial sausage casings and sponge cloths, for EUR212.5m from Montagu Private Equity, subject to anti trust approva
Silverfleet Capital has acquired Kalle, the global manufacturer of artificial sausage casings and sponge cloths, for EUR212.5m from Montagu Private Equity, subject to anti trust approval.
The deal is the first investment from Silverfleet’s EUR665m new fund and is one of the largest private equity deals agreed so far in 2009. Debt for the transaction was secured from a syndicate of banks led by the Bank of Ireland.
Guido May, partner of Silverfleet Capital, says: ‘The recession proof nature of the food sector has made it possible for us to secure new debt, with the banks more willing to finance leveraged buy-outs in this sector.’
Headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany, Kalle has forecasted sales of EUR220m and operates from 16 production sites in ten countries. It has invested heavily in new product development and in establishing its own manufacturing facility in the US, the world’s largest market for artificial casings.
‘Kalle is the market leader in its segments and has strong technical skills based on its excellent research and development capability. We operate with high levels of productivity and offer a comprehensive portfolio of high quality products to our global customer base. This sets the company in a strong position to outperform the rest of the market. We look forward to working with Silverfleet Capital to further realise the potential of the business,’ says Walter Niederstätter, chief executive of Kalle.
The total sausage casings’ market size (natural and artificial) was estimated to be around EUR3.5bn in 2008. The market has grown from 2003 to 2008 by 3.1 per cent per annum and is expected to grow from 2008 to 2012 by 3.4 per cent per annum. Approximately 51 per cent of the total market value is attributable to artificial casings. This share is expected to increase to 54 per cent in 2012.
