Finnish packaging company Huhtamaki Oyj has acquired a 51% stake in Valpack Solutions Pvt. Ltd, a privately held paper cup manufacturer based in Mumbai, for a debt-free price of about €2 million ($2.2 million).
The acquisition helps Huhtamaki enter the growing food service packaging market in India, where it already has many customers, the company said in a statement.
“Many of our global and regional customers have plans to grow in India. With Valpack, a well-established company with high manufacturing standards, we're able to serve them locally,†said Eric Le Lay, executive vice president for Huhtamaki’s food service business in Europe, Asia and Oceania.
Lay said the company plans to grow the business by investing in additional capacity and introducing an extended offering of food service packaging in India.
Valpack makes a range of paper cups and other food service packaging products for both domestic and international clients. Its annualised net sales are about €4 million and it employs about 100 people in its manufacturing unit in Mumbai, Huhtamaki said.
Valpack will become part of Huhtamaki's food service Europe-Asia-Oceania business segment.
This is Huhtamaki's second acquisition in India. In 2014, it had acquired Mumbai-based Positive Packaging, a maker of flexible packaging products with nine manufacturing facilities in India and the United Arab Emirates, for €247 million ($336 million then).
Huhtamaki Group has 72 factories and 23 sales offices in 34 countries. It employs about 17,000 employees and its net sales totaled €2.7 billion in 2015. The company makes packaging products for food and beverages sectors as well as non-food sectors such as consumer products, electronics and healthcare.
Trilegal advised Huhtamaki on the acquisition of Valpack.
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