Food processing equipment and software giant Marel has successfully closed the US$ 540 million acquisition of Wenger, a Kansas-based processing solutions provider for the petfood, plant-based proteins and aquafeed sectors.
The agreement to acquire Wenger, as announced on 27 April 2022, was subject to customary closing conditions which have been fully satisfied as of 9 June, such as anti-trust and approval from Wenger’s shareholders.
Moving forward, Wenger will form a new business segment for Marel and fourth pillar of the business model in addition to poultry, meat, and fish, and part of segment reporting as of Q3 2022 financial results.
Marel expects the acquisition to be margin and earnings enhancing, and that pro-forma the Wenger business will be around 10% of Marel’s total revenues and 12% of its combined EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation).
With over 500 employees located in close vicinity to Marel in Kansas, Valinhos in Brazil and Kolding in Denmark, Wenger’s revenues in 2022 are expected to be $190 million and its EBITDA to be $32-35 million.
The acquisition is being financed through Marel’s strong balance sheet and existing credit facilities.
According to Marel, the global petfood and aquafeed markets are estimated at over €100 billion and €50 billion respectively and growing at 5-6% annually. The plant-based protein market is currently around €7 billion and expected to grow 15-20% annually.
It also said the addressable market for Marel and Wenger in solutions and services within pet food, plant-based proteins, and aquafeed is estimated to be around €2 billion with expected annual growth of 4-6%.
