OSLO: A Hamilton fruit technology manufacturer has been bought by a Norwegian giant.
A $66.9 million acquisition of BBC Technologies – a family-run producer of sorting and packaging machines for small fruits – was announced to the Oslo stock exchange on Tuesday.
The deal with Norway-based TOMRA Foods, and the deal will have BBC Technologies grow its already $34m per year in exports.The company now exports $34 million per year of machines that sort and pack blueberries, cherries and other small fruits by colour, softness and defect. It employs 150 people in countries including New Zealand, Chile and the United States.
Under the arrangement, BBC Technologies will become a division of TOMRA and Furniss will remain in charge. There are no expected changes to the company’s operation. TOMRA Foods chief executive Mike Riley said BBC Technologies was simply “the best in the business”.
The Norway-based company, which manufactures sorting and packing machines for food, recycling and mining industries, boasts 95,000 installations in 80 countries and a 2017 revenue of around $1.2 billion.
TOMRA has a track-record of purchasing New Zealand horticulture technology companies, it purchased Auckland-based pack-house automation systems manufacturer Compac in 2016.
“There’s no doubt in our mind BBC Technologies have the best solution for the berries space. It’s something that was built from the ground up, aimed fairly and squarely at the market. We could’ve had a go at it ourselves at Compac, but we just don’t understand the berries business,” Riley said.
Between the two companies, TOMRA will have 500 people in New Zealand working in horticulture technology.
