Frutarom has acquired 80% of the shares of SDFLC Brasil Indústria E Comércio Ltda. (SDFLC), a Brazilian producer of taste solutions for ice creams and desserts, for approx. $33 million. The purchase agreement includes an option for the purchase of the balance of shares beginning about two and a half years after the date of completion of the transaction.

SDFLC had sales over the 12 month period ending May 2017 of approximately $22 million after achieving average annual growth of 17% over the past five years.

SDFLC was founded in 2001 in the city of Sete Lagoas in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais and has a leading position in the market for taste solutions for ice creams and desserts in Brazil based on longstanding Italian tradition and technological specialization. The company provides its customers support in product R&D built on a portfolio of solutions for ice creams and desserts based on natural ingredients and includes: diverse taste solutions, texture solutions, coatings and glazing, as well as a unique diversity of innovative functional solutions (low sugar, low fat, low calorie and non-allergenic).

SDFLC employs about 90 workers and serves around 2,250 customers in Brazil in the field of ice cream and desserts, including independent artisan ice cream makers, multinationals, food processing companies and leading dining chains, and this is by means of a sales and marketing network.

The activity of SDFLC is said to be synergistic to a large degree with Frutaroms taste solutions activity, with emphasis on sweet flavours and taste solutions based on natural ingredients aimed at desserts.

The acquisition of SDFLC is Frutarom’s third acquisition in the Brazilian market and its sixth in the Latin American market in the last five years.

"The acquisition of SDFLC is the continuation of the implementation of Frutarom Groups rapid profitable growth strategy and the realization of its vision to be the preferred partner for tasty and healthy success,” said Ori Yehudai, President and CEO of Frutarom. “This is an important strategic acquisition that provides Frutarom with significant reinforcement of its position in the Brazilian market, which is Latin America’s foremost market. SDFLC has a leading position in Brazil’s market of sweet taste solutions for ice creams and desserts which is based on longstanding tradition and know-how and cutting-edge technology, and we intend to continue expanding its activity by means of Frutarom’s global support and the exploiting of the many cross-selling opportunities, both by offering Frutarom’s broad portfolio of solutions to SDFLC customers in Brazil and by expanding SDFLC’s activities into countries in the region wher Frutarom already has a sales and marketing infrastructure in place. Completion of construction on the modern new site will permit the doubling of SDFLC’s production capacity while supporting the further rapid growth in activity and exploitation of the abundant operational synergies with our existing activity in Brazil.”