Katwijk, The Netherlands-based Parlevliet & Van der Plas (P&P), has formed a joint venture partnership with Dutch seafood processor and packager Profish Food through P&P subsidiary Heiploeg.
The deal, which will take effect on 1 January, 2019, will enable Profish and Heiploeg to “combine their high-quality products, new product development, commercial networks, and distribution capabilities, to provide innovative product to their clients effectively,” according to a joint press release.
“Under the partnership, Profish will become a joint venture that will be recapitalized by both parties, enabling the necessary investments and improving the competences of the company,” the companies said. “Arm’s-length supply agreements as well as an agency agreement regarding the distribution of Profish’ products in Germany through Heiploeg, are important elements of the partnership.”
Twello, the Netherlands-based Profish, sells primarily into the Dutch and German retail sector, and has a supply agreement with the Superunie chain of supermarkets. Its core products include fresh, smoked, and ready-to-eat salmon, cod, shrimp, and whitefish. Similarly, Heiploeg has a strong position in the German and Dutch markets, offering primarily shrimp products through retail, foodservice channels and to wholesalers and food processing companies.
“The new combination will use the respective strengths in processing, sales, and distribution of fresh fish and fish concepts of both companies,” the joint press release said.
The Dutch business journal Financieele Dagblad reported Profish had been struggling financially after director Frank Schreur sold a majority ownership stake in the family business to investment firm Heuvelrug in 2016. Total sales at Profish sunk from EUR 105 million in 2016 (USD 120.5 million) to EUR 95 million (USD 109 million) in 2017, according to the company’s annual reports. Schreur said at the time of the 2016 sale that the company required continued investments in order to keep up with its rapid expansion.
"We got stuck,” he told Financieele Dagblad.
Upon its takeover, Heuvelrug invested in improvements in the company’s factory in Twello and in logistics handling, allowing the facility’s capacity to double.
However, more capital investment was apparently necessary, as P&P’s involvement comes a capital injection of an undisclosed amount. In addition, the JV between Heiploeg and Profish will allow the latter to “buy at a lower price and has more certainty on the supply of raw materials,” according to its press release.
P&P’s involvement with Profish continues its acquisitive streak, which has seen it buy Heiploeg out of bankruptcy in 2014, French tuna company CFTO in May 2016, and Deutsche See in February 2018.
