Tycoon swoops to land £342m food fi rm deal
THE tycoon behind the Harry Ramsden’s fish-and-chip chain last night sealed a £342 million deal for Northern Foods, gatecrashing its proposed merger with Irish group Glencore.
Chicken magnate Ranjit Boparan offered 73p a share for the maker of Goodfella’s pizzas and Fox’s biscuits, trumping the all-share offer from Glencore, the maker of Aunt Bessie’s sauces, which valued the group at £236 million, or 50p a share.
Northern Foods has recommended the Boparan deal.
Boparan’s all-cash offer represents a 61 per cent premium to Northern Foods share price before the Glencore merger was unveiled.
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Northern Foods chairman Anthony Hobson said the attractive cash offer gave shareholders an immediate exit worth more than the all-share deal with Glencore.
He added: “Today’s bid from Boparan is a compelling opportunity for our share-holders.”
Boparan said: “The combined group will be one of Britain’s major food suppliers with a turnover of more than £2 billion.
“This will create significant opportunities.”
His company is a major supplier of chicken and fish products in the UK, with 12 factories and 6,000 employees.
The offer came after the markets shut, but Northern Foods shares rose 2½p to 63p in anticipation of a deal after it emerged Boparan had reached an agreement with the company’s pension fund trustees.