United Petfood makes strategic acquisition to support wet pet food production

GHENT, BELGIUM — United Petfood, a European manufacturer of dog and cat food, announced Dec. 21 it has acquired Nieuwkoop, the Netherlands-based De Haan Petfood. The Dutch producer offers expertise in high-quality meat chunks in gravy wet food for dogs and cats, which the company distributes worldwide.

United Petfood is expected to benefit from De Haan Petfood’s 60-plus years of experience in wet pet food production. According to United Petfood, the acquisition “opens up new avenues” for the company to help it meet growing demand for wet formats.

“We are pleased to be joining the UP family and we are convinced this will allow us to consolidate our business success,” United Petfoods stated. “On a commercial level, we can pool our resources while existing UP clients get access to an experienced manufacturer of canned wet food. We will also be able to share our know-how and experience on an operational level.”

Eddy Nijhof, site managing director, will remain with De Haan Petfood following the acquisition in an effort to maintain current service levels and business relationships.

The purchase of De Haan Petfood follows several other acquisitions by United Petfood, including its acquisition of Turkish producer Lider Pet Food in February.

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