Clearwater France has advised private equity firm Montagu on the disposal of French margarine and soya desserts specialist St Hubert.
St Hubert was founded in 1904 and is the leading player in the French and Italian plant-based spread markets with revenues of €130m. Its also the leader in preventative health spreads, naturally rich in Omega 3 thanks to the use of vegetable oils. St Hubert was also the first brand to launch a premium range of palm-oil free spreads.
Montagu entered into exclusive talks to sell St Hubert to a consortium formed by the Chinese groups Fosun and Beijing Sanyuan Foods, the fourth largest Chinese dairy group. The transaction concluded positively in January 2018 after authorisation from Chinese authorities.
The French team of Clearwater, alongside the Montagu fund, initiated this merger. This operation will enable St Hubert to find new prospects and develop new expertise.
