France’s Freshpack is moving forward with a deal to acquire a 50-percent stake in Canada’s VIP Seafood, according to a recent report from La Voix du Nord.
The deal will allow Freshpack to access new U.S. market opportunities for French shellfish and seafood. The French firm will also work out an exclusive agreement with the firm to distribute its Canadian products, particularly raw lobster meat, in Europe, according to the company.
"We signed an exclusive agreement to market raw lobster meat, cold-extracted using a high-pressure process, and immediately frozen," Freshpack Co-Director Franck Paque said. "As it has agreements with major U.S. distributors, we will also access this outsized market to distribute our products: king crab meat, cooked dishes, shrimp, and more."
In 2015, Freshpack made a similar move when it bought 50 percent of salmon supplier Direct Ocean from Philippe Barbe for an unspecified price.
Freshpack, which is based out of San Martin les Boulogne, France, took home top honors last month during the Seafood Excellence Global awards, hosted at Seafood Expo Global in Brussels, Belgium. The firm won best HORECA (hotel/restaurant/catering) product for its high pressure shelled raw king crab meat.
