Dinard, June 27, 2018
Press release
KERSIA ANNOUNCES THE ACQUISITION OF KILCO, A UK COMPANY SPECIALIZED IN BIOSECURITY
Kersia – the new name for Hypred, Anti-Germ, Medentech, LCB Food Safety and G3, the global leader in food safety, announces the acquisition of Kilco, a company based in Scotland (United Kingdom) and a specialist in animal health and food safety. Kilco has been a family business since its founding in 1953 and was up to now fully owned by Gerry McGladery, Managing Director.
Kersia is accompanied in this new acquisition by its majority shareholder Ardian, a world-leading private investment house. After four strategic acquisitions over the past 18 months, Kersia confirms its position as a major player in the sector consolidation and strengthens its pure player positioning in food safety across the entire chain – “from farm to fork” – in all European markets and abroad.
Specialized in animal health (hygiene and disinfection solutions, nutritional complements and care products), recognized for its know-how in the poultry sector, as well as in food safety, Kilco has two production sites, one in Mallusk, Ireland, and the other in Lockerbie, UK. The company also exports biosecurity solutions to more than 70 countries around the world and achieves more than 40% of its business internationally. The company has a strong Research and Development business with 50 years of experience. Joining Kersia will allow Kilco to benefit from the proven key-account model developed by the group and from its manufacturing worldwide capabilities.
This operation will allow Kersia to:
- Broaden its range of solutions, particularly in the pig and poultry sectors in which Kilco has a very good competency;
- Benefit from the strong know-how developed by Kilco in the poultry field;
- Have an industrial base to grow in the food hygiene sector in the UK and to complete its facilities in Ireland;
- Strengthen its geographical reach in Europe.
- Integrate teams of talented people, which have delivered solid growth and performance over the past years
Sébastien Bossard, CEO of Kersia, says: “With the acquisition of Kilco, we are continuing our 18-month-long development and strengthening our leading position in Europe, but also our pure player positioning in Food Safety for the entire food chain in the world. We now have an industrial base in the UK and are completing our facilities in Ireland, which is essential to gaining market shares in this strategic area. We chose Kilco for its great expertise in the field of biosecurity, the complementarities between our two structures but also for the values we share around societal responsibility, public health and environmental impact. We are very pleased to welcome the Kilco teams to our group.”
“Kilco has grown larger and more successful than we ever could have imagined,” explained managing director, Gerry McGladery. “The time has come to broaden our horizons by joining forces with a truly global player. The Kersia deal will give us the infrastructure, investment and innovation we need to drive our products and research forward to the next level, as part of Kersia’s global vision for a food safe world.”
About Kersia
Kersia is a global leader in biosecurity and food safety with value added products and solutions to prevent diseases or contamination in both animal and humans at every stage of the food supply chain.
Kersia is the name adopted in 2018 by Hypred, Antigerm, Medentech, LCB Food Safety and G3, experts in their fields which came together in 2017 and 2018, bringing together complementary skills and expertise that improve farm performance and add value to the food industry.
Now present in more than 90 countries and employs more than 850 personnel, Kersia records a turnover of 200 million euros.
About Kilco
Kilco has been a family owned company since 1953 and has grown from a small local firm to a multi-national business, with manufacturing plants in Mallusk in Ireland and Lockerbie in Scotland exporting to 70 countries around the world. Their innovative research leads the industry, creating products that are used around the world to enhance biosecurity within the food chain, from farm to fork.
In 2017, Kilco recorded a turnover of 20 million pounds.