R&R buys into French ice cream market
The deal to purchase Rolland, which produces around 65 million litres of ice cream per year, is currently being assessed by the French Competition Authority. If it goes through as planned, the acquisition is expected to create the second largest ice cream group in supermarket sales in each of the UK, Germany and France.
“This acquisition marks an important stage in our strategy to grow our company on mainland Europe. The ice cream manufacturing sector continues to consolidate. This period of consolidation within the industry will also result in further growth opportunities and I fully expect to be announcing more acquisitions soon,” said James Lambert, CEO of R&R Ice Cream.
Rolland, which has been operating since 1898, currently manufactures branded, private label and licensed ice cream products. Around three quarters of its sales are in France, but the firm also exports to over 20 countries around the world. The planned acquisition would lead to total sales of over 500 million litres of ice cream per year.
