Fresh produce firm Greenyard has announced a new €467.5 million financing agreement, which includes support from a consortium of banks, the Flemish government, and two private investors, one of which is Belgian billionaire Marc Coucke.
Coucke's Alychlo NV investment firm, alongside existing shareholder Joris Ide, have committed to participate in a €50 million reserved capital increase, the company said.
Following the investment, Coucke, the founder of pharmaceutical giant Omega Pharma, will become a member of Greenyard's board of directors.
“Greenyard has shown great resilience, fighting spirit and entrepreneurship to become a healthy company again," Coucke said. "On top of that, Greenyard is working in an attractive sector, fruit and vegetables, that is set to become even more important in the coming years as consumers increasingly look for healthy consumption products.
"We are looking forward to working together on the execution of the business plan and beyond.”
'Stable Financing Structure'
In a statement, Greenyard said that the financing agreement, which runs for a period of three years, will provide with it a stable financing structure over the next few years.
'The new bank financing, in combination with the equity contribution, provide for a stable foundation for the execution of the long-term ambitions as indicated in Greenyard’s announcement of 25 February', it said.
In that announcement, Greenyard said that it was planning a series of sustainability investments, as well as plans to 'deepen' its relationship with its customers, expand its asset base and production capabilities, develop a 'smart sourcing' strategy, and strengthen the internal organisation of the group.
“We are excited to see Greenyard taking this important step towards the execution of its long-term growth ambitions," said Hein Deprez, co-CEO, Greenyard. "The stability of our financing, but also the faith and confidence provided by our investors creates a fertile basis for the organisation to continue our improvements and live up to our expectations.”
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
