4.Asda
Asda bought outright two multi-million pound meat manufacturing firms – Kober and Forza AW – in which it previously owned a stake in January.
The UK’s third largest supermarket announced the deal after a five-year joint venture with the companies’ owner Max Smith-Hilliard.
The sister companies based in Yorkshire had been sole Asda suppliers since 2011 and entrepreneur Smith-Hilliard was to now run a protein division for Asda.
The businesses have been added to the portfolio of Asda’s subsidiary International Procurement and Logistics (IPL) based in Normanton.
IPL ceo Nick Scrase said: “Our one defining strategy that drives our business model is to simplify supply chains by cutting out the middle man and then passing these cost savings onto Asda customers.
“We have had a hugely successful partnership with Max Smith-Hilliard over the last five years which has driven significant savings and created a world-class business which we are proud to be bringing into the IPL family.”