Nestlé and R&R Ice Cream seal joint venture deal

The new company will specialise in manufacturing ice cream, frozen food and chilled dairy products. The deal was completed following successful employee consultations and regulatory approval.

Froneri will be headquarted in the UK and have sites in 22 countries, including in Europe, the Middle East (excluding Israel), Argentina, Australia, Brazil, the Philippines and South Africa. It will achieve €2.6bn (£2.3bn) in sales and employ around 15,000 people, the company said.

The planned deal between manufacturers Nestlé and R&R Ice Cream was announced in April. At the time, Nestlé ceo Paul Buckle said: “This is an exciting growth opportunity in a dynamic category.

‘An exciting growth opportunity’

“Froneri will capitalise on complementary strengths and innovation expertise, combining Nestlé’s strong and successful brands and experience in ‘out-of-home’ distribution, with R&R’s competitive manufacturing model and significant presence in retail.”

Nestlé executive vice president Luis Cantarell was appointed to chair the Froneri board of directors, and Ibrahim Najafi – formerly ceo of R&R Ice Cream – was appointed ceo of Froneri.

Najafi said: “I am thrilled about the potential of Froneri and the opportunity for R&R to combine with the biggest and best food business in the world.

‘From strength to strength’

“R&R has gone from strength to strength in the last few years, and the blend of people from the two organisations will create a leading team, ideally suited to drive future growth.”

FoodManufacture.co.uk first revealed that Nestlé and R&R were in talks in October 2015. The companies had worked together for the past 14 years – most recently in Australia and South Africa.

Meanwhile, sales dropped 1.3% at R&R Ice Cream in its first quarter of 2016, following tough European trading conditions and fluctuating exchange rates. Nestlé posted a net profit of CHF 4.1bn (£3.3bn) between January and June 2016, a CHF 400M (£319M) drop on the same period last year.