Pork and seafood processors join forces

Young’s Seafood and Karro, a leading UK pork processor, have joined forces to create a group that will have sales of circa £1.2 billion and employ over 5,000 people across the UK and Ireland.

The announcement was made today by CapVest, a leading international investor which has owned Karro since March 2017, after it has reached an agreement to acquire Young’s.

Karro and Young’s will operate as two separate businesses within the enlarged group and will continue to focus on providing great food to customers across pork and seafood. Di Walker, current executive chair of Karro, has been appointed CEO of the new Group.

Commenting on the announcement, she said: “We are very excited about the opportunity to create an ambitious multi-protein food business of considerable scale. Young’s and Karro are highly complementary businesses and the combined platform will have strong market positions in two important protein categories that are experiencing consistent long-term growth. Today’s agreement will provide both businesses with the opportunity to further develop and broaden our relationships with our key partners.”

Bill Showalter, CEO of Young’s, said: “We are delighted to be moving forward with Karro and CapVest and we believe this move will be positive for the fish and seafood industry as a whole. With CapVest’s existing understanding of our industry, and as part of a multi-protein food group, we will have the opportunity to inspire more consumers to love fish through our fresh, frozen, own-label and branded products. The transaction will build an even stronger foundation from which we can drive growth, providing exceptional quality fish and stand out innovation to countries around the world.”

Jason Rodrigues, partner at CapVest, said: “CapVest believe strongly that the combination of Young’s and Karro will create a differentiated and attractive multi-protein platform. We look forward to working closely with management to accelerate investment and strengthen the competitive position of each business, whilst also pursuing other acquisition-led growth opportunities.”