Nazca divests its stake in Eurocebollas, leader in natural ingredients specialized in cooked onions
- With more than 40 years of experience, Eurocebollas is the leading food ingredient manufacturer specialized in ready-to-use onion solutions for the ready-to-eat industry and the foodservice channel in Spain and over 30 countries.
- After a successful organic growth project, based on the development of new business lines and international expansion, Eurocebollas has doubled its size in two years, reaching €42m in sales in 2022 and more than €9m EBITDA.
- Francisco Alberola, CEO and majority shareholder, will maintain his stake in the capital and, together with Portobello, will continue developing the company’s international expansion.
Madrid, 19 July 2023.- NAZCA CAPITAL, leading private equity investment firm in non-listed Spanish SMEs, has divested its stake in Eurocebollas, with Portobello Capital becoming Francisco Alberola’s new minority partner in the Company. This sale represents the second divestment of the Nazca Small Cap I Fund (raised in the first half of 2019) and comes after a successful project of strong organic growth, international expansion and development of new business lines, which has translated into doubling its revenues since 2020.
Founded in 1980 and based in Alzira (Valencia), Eurocebollas is the pioneer and leading manufacturer of ready-to-use processed onion, a natural and healthy ingredient with a unique value proposition for the food industry and foodservice industry.
Currently, there is a favourable growth trend both domestically and internationally in the ready-to-eat market driven by changes in consumer habits and a stronger preference for convenience solutions.
Within this market, the company offers producers a unique value proposition based on a wide variety of more than 160 ready-to-use recipes adapted to specific customer needs. These solutions provide a high added value to the customer compared to the traditional alternative (fresh or frozen onion), as it allows them to simplify their production and supply processes, as well as saving on personnel and energy costs, always obtaining a homogeneous ingredient that is incorporated into the recipe of their final product.
Eurocebollas currently employs around 200 people, and has a newly built 17,000m2 highly automated factory in Alzira and its sorting warehouse in Chinchilla, inaugurated in 2021. In 2022 the company recorded revenues of €42m and €9m EBITDA and in 2023 it expects to grow again in double digits to exceed revenues of €55m. Eurocebollas operates globally (more than 40% of sales are exports) with a relevant positioning in countries such as France, UK and USA.
Portobello Capital, the new minority partner that takes over from Nazca Capital, will support Francisco Alberola and the entire Eurocebollas management team in a new phase of expansion of the company both in current markets as well as in new geographies and business lines.
Francisco Alberola, CEO and majority shareholder of Eurocebollas, comments: «With this transaction we close a stage of strong growth thanks to the support of a top level financial partner such as Nazca Capital. In two and a half years we have been able to make a relevant step both in national and international growth, as well as in the strengthening of the organization and expansion of the production capacity with important investments to have top-notch facilities «.
Celia Pérez-Beato, partner of NAZCA, comments: «Eurocebollas has a unique positioning in the natural ingredients industry and, together with Francisco Alberola and his team, we have been able to consolidate this positioning and its entry barriers, highlighting the competitive advantages of the solution offered by the company and boosting its international positioning».
The advisors on the transaction on behalf Nazca and Francisco Alberola have been: M & A, Socios Financieros; VDD, KPMG; Fiscal, Pérez-Llorca and Lopez-Ibor Abogados. The advisors on the transaction on behalf of Portobello have been EY, Roland Berger and Linklaters.