Vandemoortele: acquires leading French bakery group Panavi

Ghent / BE. (vg) Belgian Vandemoortele Group announced that it has come to an agreement with the shareholders of the Group Panavi concerning the take-over of the company. Group Panavi is the French market leader in frozen bakery products, with a turnover of 307 million EUR in 2007. The Group has twenty-two factories, seventeen distribution centres and well over 2.000 employees in France. With this take-over, Vandemoortele is ranking itself among the European top in the sector of frozen bakery products. Panavi´s product range consists mainly of bread and breakfast pastry. The company is supplier to all the large chains of shops and wholesalers in France. The take-over is subject to the prior approval of the French regulation authorities.

In 2007, Vandemoortele realised a turnover of 290 million EUR with its own frozen bakery products activities. Vandemoortele produces and distributes a wide range of breakfast pastry, pasty, bread and «American products» (i.e. donuts). For this it has eleven production units in France (4), Belgium (3), Germany (1), Poland (1), The Netherlands (1) and the United Kingdom (1).

The takeover of Panavi Group by Vandemoortele Group is a crucial step in Vandemoortele´s strategy to further expand its activities in the frozen bakery products and strengthen its position in France. «The European market for frozen bakery products sees a growth of five to ten percent each year. Within Europe, France is the largest market for frozen bread, breakfast pastry and pastry. After the take-over of Panavi, Vandemoortele, with its extensive and unique product range, 34 factories and 3.800 employees, will rank itself among the key players in Europe», according to Jean Vandemoortele, President of the Executive Committee of the Vandemoortele Group.