Bel to “Assert Leadership” in Healthy Snacks After Completing MOM Deal

24 Oct 2016 --- Bel Group will "assert its leadership as a major player in the healthy snacks segment" after finalising its purchase of a majority stake in Gogo Squeez maker MOM Group in a deal valued at €850m ($926m).

Bel, the maker of Babybel cheese and cheese spread The Laughing Cow, has purchased a 65 percent share in the French business from LBO France.

Details of the deal between the two French companies was first disclosed in July this year.

The management of MOM will hold the remaining 35 percent of the company for now. However, as part of the agreement, Bel will be able to acquire this 35 percent stake by April 2022.

MOM sells healthy fruit snacks and fruit pouches and its brands include apple sauce brand Gogo Squeez and dessert brand Pom’Potes, which are sold in France and the United States. 

The company has doubled in size in the past five years, registering sales of €362 million ( $400 million) in 2015, the company said. 

MOM employs 1,300 people at four production sites: two in France and two in the United States.

Antoine Fiévet, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Bel said, “I’m delighted that we have achieved this new step. This transaction alongside the MOM Group managers represents a historical opportunity for Bel to assert its leadership as a major player in the healthy snacks segment, in line with the directions that we have set for the coming years.”

“At MOM, as at Bel, the strategic relevance of the deal and the range of growth opportunities it creates are clear to everyone. We are all very eager to begin our collaboration and to launch this new growth phase, which is very exciting for all the teams.”

Michel Larroche, MOM Group CEO, said, “For MOM, this partnership with Bel offers a unique opportunity to accelerate the growth of our healthy, fruit and dairy snack brands by leaning on the Bel Group’s extraordinary international reach.”

“Our partnership with Bel will help create a global, healthy snack-food company that is uniquely positioned and supported by strong brands. I thank and applaud LBO France, as well as the MOM Group employees who helped double our company’s size over the past five years and helped build strong brands, notably in France and the United States. I am pleased to have the opportunity to further accelerate our growth in partnership with Bel’s teams.”

Robert Daussun, LBO France CEO, said, “LBO France is pleased to see the conclusion of this acquisition, which crowns the impeccable career of a company striking out to conquer international markets. The remarkable success achieved in the U.S. is only a step on MOM’s way to becoming a world leader. 

“At the dawn of this future growth phase, we are particularly pleased to be passing the baton to the Bel Group. With this partnership, MOM will find the natural commercial resources to accelerate its growth, and Bel will definitively be able to assert its ambition as a global player in healthy snacks. LBO France is proud of its contribution to strengthening the French food industry’s international position and reputation for excellence and performance.”