Bonduelle has confirmed the sale of its packaged salads business in Germany as part of a transformation plan to return the group to profit.
The disposal of the assets to Taylor Farms was completed on 31 March for an undisclosed sum, the Villeneuve-d’Ascq, France-based fruit and veg group said in a statement.
Announcing the planned divestment in August, Bonduelle described Taylor Farms as a “North American producer of salads and healthy fresh foods”, with production facilities across the US, Canada, and Mexico. The family-owned business is based in Salinas, California.
Bonduelle added today (1 April) that the sale of the packaged salads business in Germany “marks an important step towards improving the group’s operating profitability” under the Transform to Win programme put forward in October.
Just Food has asked the publicly listed company to clarify the nature of the assets sold, in terms of plants and the number of employees involved, and for an update on the disposal of its France packaged salads business.
In August, Bonduelle said it was in talks with salad maker Les Crudettes, a subsidiary of French food-and-beverage company LSDH Group, concerning the disposal of those assets, including its Saint Mihiel site.
Post the transaction with Taylor Farms, Bonduelle said it will continue to market canned and frozen vegetables in Germany and has entered a licensing agreement with the buyer for packaged salads.
It described the packaged salads business in Germany as “structurally loss-making” and represented sales of €60m ($64.8m).
Bonduelle showed some progress in returning the group to profitability in the first half of its current fiscal year under the guidance of CEO Xavier Unkovic, who joined the business in June 2023.
Net income from continuing operations climbed to €17.2m from €6.4m a year earlier, although on a consolidated basis Bonduelle delivered a loss of €5m versus a €4.5m profit in the corresponding period.
Sales revenue in the half to 31 December dropped 1.5% in like-for-like terms to €1.12bn and was down 1.7% on a reported basis, the company revealed in March.
The three-year Transform to Win project is designed to “create the conditions for transition, then a rebound, and finally an acceleration of the company’s performance around an organisation aligned with shared objectives and ambitious strategic planning”, Bonduelle said in its full-year fiscal 2023/24 results announcement in October.
Those results showed Bonduelle registered a net loss of €119.8m that year, compared to a profit of €14.5m in the previous 12 months.
