McCormick: Acquires Italian flavour manufacturer

Sparks / MD. (mcc) McCormick + Company Inc., a global leader in flavour, announced that it has agreed to acquire 100 percent of the shares of Enrico Giotti SpA (Giotti), a leading Italian flavor manufacturer located in Florence, Italy.

• Giotti is well known in the industry for its innovative beverage, sweet, savory and dairy flavor applications. Annual sales are approximately 53 million EUR (56 million USD).
• The acquisition of Giotti expands the breadth of value-added products for McCormick’s industrial segment including additional expertise in flavoring health and nutrition products.
• McCormick plans to acquire the business for a cash payment of approximately 120 million EUR (127 million U.S. Dollars), subject to certain closing adjustments.

Lawrence E. Kurzius, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, «The acquisition of Giotti is another important step in the execution of our growth strategy. McCormick is a leading flavor supplier to packaged food companies and multi-national restaurants, and this acquisition expands the breadth of our value-added flavor solutions in Europe with strong and innovative R+D capabilities. With this acquisition, we add greater scale to our already substantial industrial segment business in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region».

Malcolm Swift, President, Global Industrial and International Business added, «We anticipate strong growth driven by Giotti’s expertise in the high growth health and nutrition segment. The owners and employees of Giotti share with McCormick a great history and commitment to innovation and quality, and we look forward to working with them to achieve continued success».

Founded in 1928, Giotti is a leading manufacturer of natural flavors, aromatic herbal extracts, and concentrated juices. The company is privately owned and headquartered in Florence, Italy. Annual sales of the business are approximately 53 million EUR (56 million USD). The purchase price for Giotti is approximately 120 million EUR (127 million USD) subject to certain closing adjustments and the transaction multiple is expected to be approximately 12 times Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization). McCormick expects to complete this transaction in December 2016.