French firm buyout to give Azelis synergistic opportunities in animal nutrition

21-Jul-2021 - Last updated on 21-Jul-2021 at 13:08 GMT

Belgium headquartered, Azelis, which is a distributor of specialty chemicals and animal nutrition and food ingredients, has acquired French company, Quimdis.

It said the purchase of that French distributor of ingredients for nutraceuticals, flavor and fragrances, animal nutrition, personal care, pharma and food will enhance its lateral value chain by diversifying and expanding its presence in France and EMEA, while providing it with synergistic opportunities in animal nutrition.

The deal, said the Belgian firm, is consistent with its strategy of complementing organic growth with strategic acquisitions. It is expected to close at the end of next month.

Headquartered in Paris, with sales close to €100m, Quimdis was founded in 1988, and originally focused on essential oils and active ingredients. It now specializes in the ingredient distribution and formulation development, maintaining solid positions in the French market, but with sales into more than 45 countries, said Azelis. Last September saw it secure a deal with Fermentalg to distribute its plant based DHA range in the German market for use in multiple sectors.

Potential IPO

Last month we reported that Swedish private equity group, EQT, was weighing an initial public offering (IPO) of Azelis for after the summer.

According to a report on Bloomberg, Azelis, could be valued at about €5bn (US$6bn) in an IPO. The company has about 2,500 employees, and customers in more than 50 countries, coupled with an extensive network of over 60 laboratories and research centers.

EQT acquired Azelis in 2018 from Apax Partners for an undisclosed amount. Canada’s PSP Investments was a co-investor in that deal.

Azelis did not return our request for comment today on whether the IPO is still a possibility.

Distribution deals

Azelis’ animal nutrition division has strong roots in the UK and Ireland but has been developing a global presence in the past few years. In 2019, it acquired Orkila, a specialty chemical, and animal nutrition and food ingredients distributor in Africa and the Middle East.

Azelis has been extending its reach in the animal nutrition ingredients distribution arena.

In January this year, it announced it had inked a deal with Swedish group, Perstorp, to distribute its animal nutrition range of gut health products, feed hygiene solutions, acidifiers, silage additives and TMR and grain preservatives. The two companies were already partners in EMEA, with Azelis representing Perstorp on its feed product range in South Africa as well as its performance chemicals in parts of Europe.

Last year Azelis announced a distribution partnership for animal nutrition with Roquette, the French multinational maker of plant-based products for various sectors, building on their agreement in the food and nutrition markets. The animal nutrition deal covered a number of countries in Northern and Eastern Europe, including the UK.