Unifrutti eyes growth after fresh acquisitions

SAO PAULO: Abu Dhabi-controlled fresh food producer Unifrutti is expanding its footprint in Latin America with two acquisitions in Peru, building on a previous purchase in the region as the firm eyes continued growth in the fruit market.

The company has reached a deal to buy both Avoamerica Peru and Bomarea from Us-based Solum Partners and Alpine Fresh, it said last Saturday, following its January acquisition of Verfrut, which produces fruits in Chile and Peru.

Unifrutti, which distributes 500,000 tonnes of fresh fruits worldwide per year, has been controlled by ADQ since 2022 as the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund focused on agriculture as a way to boost its financial gains and increase food resilience in the United Arab Emirates.

The newly acquired companies grow avocados and blueberries, both new markets for the company, which is a big producer of apples, grapes and cherries with plots in Chile, Italy, the Philippines and South Africa.

Oil-rich Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which imports 90% of its food, have often invested in food companies overseas in a push toward food security.

Under ADQ, Unifrutti is looking to grow and Latin America seemed the right place for the “initial phase” of its plans.

“Latin America is probably the world’s most important region for fruit exports, in particular to the United States, Europe and China, so it made a lot of sense for our mergers and acquisitions (M&A) efforts to begin in Chile and Peru” Unifrutti chief M&A and strategy officer Karl Stehelin de Taisne said in an interview.