Announcing its second overseas investment in six months, United Biscuits (“UB”) is expanding its business in Nigeria with the purchase of a stake in A & P Foods, one of the leading biscuit manufacturers in the country. UB has a long standing presence in the country covering several decades.
To date product has been either exported from the UK or manufactured under licence locally.
UB has seen strong growth in its International market over recent years, which, with this investment, will now make up approximately 20% of group turnover. International sales have tripled in size since 2006, two thirds of this in developing markets such as Africa, the Middle East, India and China. At the end of October UB announced that it had purchased the assets of Rana Confectionery Products in Saudi Arabia. UB’s International division is responsible for selling the McVitie’s brand in over 100 countries.
Jeff van der Eems, UB’s Chief Executive Officer for UB International said: “The Nigerian market has strong potential for UB. It is Africa’s most populous country and the biscuit market is projected to continue to grow at double digit rates. Our McVitie’s brand is already well established and enjoyed by people through out Nigeria and Africa. We are delighted to be working with A & P Foods and believe that this investment led by the A & P founder, Sameer Vaswani, will give us a great platform for further growth in this thriving market.”
Sameer Vaswani, Chief Executive Officer, A & P Foods said: “We are delighted that UB is investing in A & P Foods. A combination of our regional knowledge and a global biscuit brand such as McVitie’s puts the company in a position where it can grow strongly in the local market.”
