Greencore makes £113m bid for Uniq
Greencore has made a £113m offer to buy M&S food supplier Uniq, which has operations in Northampton and Lincolnshire.
The food manufacturer said it planned to part-fund the acquisition by issuing new shares to investors.
Uniq's pension fund put the business up for sale earlier this year after 90 per cent of the company's shares were transferred into the scheme in return for tackling a £436m deficit.
Geoff Eaton, chief executive officer of Uniq, said: "The Uniq team has done an exceptional job over the past two years to find a solution to Uniq's pension scheme issues, whilst continuing to deliver a high quality service to our customers. As a result, the building blocks are in place for the Uniq businesses to realise their full potential with a committed, long-term owner, such as Greencore."
Dublin-based Greencore, which recently missed out in a takeover bid for Northern Foods, said the Uniq acquisition would increase its food-to-go and chilled desserts catagories.
Patrick Coveney, chief executive officer of Greencore, said: "The proposed acquisition of Uniq broadens Greencore's commercial footprint and it is perfectly aligned to our strategy.
"It represents an important milestone as we extend the scale and leadership positions of our group in the UK convenience market. I am very excited about bringing together the Greencore and Uniq teams to deliver on this opportunity."
Uniq, which employs 1,900 people, makes sandwiches from a site in Northampton, salads at Spalding and desserts at Minsterley in Shropshire and Evercreech in Somerset.
