Bakkavör

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Bakkavör Group plc
Company typePublic
LSE: BAKK
FTSE 250
IndustryFood manufacturing
Founded1986; 38 years ago (1986)
Headquarters
London
,
England, UK
Number of locations
46
Area served
  • United Kingdom
  • Spain
  • France
  • United States
  • China (including Hong Kong)
Key people
Products
RevenueIncrease£2,203.8 million (2023)[2]
Increase£94.3 million (2023)[2]
Increase£53.9 million (2023)[2]
Number of employees
c.18,450 (2024)[3]
DivisionsMeals, Desserts, Pizza & Bread, Salads
Websitewww.bakkavor.com

Bakkavor Group plc (originally Bakkavör) is an international food manufacturing company specialising in fresh prepared foods. The group's head office is in London, England. Bakkavor operates 46 factory sites in the UK, US and China.[4] It is listed on the London Stock Exchange[5] and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.[6]

History

Bakkavör was founded in 1986 by the two brothers Ágúst and Lýður Guðmundsson to manufacture and export cod roe to Scandinavia.[7] In 1993 the company became the first production company in Iceland to obtain a ISO:9002 certification for quality assurance.[8]

By 1997 the company had expanded into Scandinavian and European markets selling cod and lumpfish roe. By October 2000, Bakkavor had an annual turnover of over 4.5 billion ISK.[9]

They expanded the business by selling convenience foods.[7] The company acquired Katsouris Fresh Foods in 1997, Wine & Dine in 2000,[9] and Geest in 2005.[7] In early 2003, the company sold its Icelandic components to Fram Foods ehf. and began focusing on the UK market.[10] By 2005 the company had over 13,000 employees.[11]

Following the global financial crisis of 2008, Bakkavör became heavily indebted,[12] forcing the Guðmundsson brothers into emergency talks with the company's bondholders.[12]

The founding brothers repurchased a major stake in Bakkavör from their investment company, Exista, in 2009.[13] The company delisted from the NASDAQ OMX in Iceland in 2010 and became a private limited company.[14] Lýður and Ágúst Guðmundsson faced fraud charges in Iceland in 2012 relating to their ownership of Exista.[15]

Between 2013 and 2015 the company simplified its structure, selling its South African operation and a 40% stake in its Italian business later in the year, along with other operations in Continental Europe.[16] The company acquired US prepared foods' manufacturer B. Robert's Foods in January 2015.[17]

In January 2016, Bakk AL Holdings Limited, a company owned by Ágúst and Lýður Guðmundsson and funds managed by The Baupost Group, LLC, purchased shares in the company, taking its ownership to approximately 89% of the outstanding shares.[18]

In April 2017, many supermarkets had to recall the company's hummus because of poor quality control.[19]

In November 2017 the company floated on the London Stock Exchange, in their initial public offering.[20]

Bakkvor acquired Blueberry Foods of Leicester, UK in 2019, a dessert manufacturer.[21] In 2022, Ágúst Guðmundsson stepped down as CEO and appointed Mike Edwards as its successor.[22]

On 27 September 2024, more than 400 staff at the Bakkavor factory in Spalding went on a strike in a dispute over pay. Bakkavor said it had offered 7.8% pay rises to its lowest paid workers and 6.4% to other staff. It said about 35% of the workforce was on strike, with the remaining 800 continuing to work at the site as normal.[23] In November 2024, the Financial Times reported that the strike action was causing shortages of taramasalata in UK supermarkets.[24]

Operations

The company produces a range of meals, salads, desserts, dips, sauces, sandwiches and pizza and bread products.[25] Bakkavor produces over 3,200 product categories to over 900 supplies in the UK, USA and China.[4]

Bakkavor operates 23 factories in the UK, 9 in the USA and 5 in China.[4]

References

  1. ^ "Board of Directors". Bakkavor.com. Retrieved 11 June 2018.
  2. ^ a b c "Annual Results 2023" (PDF). Bakkavör. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  3. ^ "About us". Bakkavör. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Bakkavor (2021). "Bakkavor Annual Report 2021" (PDF).
  5. ^ "Bakkavör: our story". London Stock Exchange. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  6. ^ "RPS Group (UK): Constituent Deletion - Update: Changes in FTSE UK Index Series". 18 January 2023. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  7. ^ a b c Jónsson, Ásgeir; Sigurgeirsson, Hersir (2016). The Icelandic Financial Crisis: A Study into the World's Smallest Currency Area and its Recovery from Total Banking Collapse. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 71. ISBN 978-1137394545.
  8. ^ "Gæðamál Bakkavör hlýtur viðurkenningu". www.mbl.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 13 March 2023.
  9. ^ a b "Morgunblaðið - Morgunblaðið C - Viðskiptablað Morgunblaðsins (12.10.2000) - Tímarit.is". timarit.is. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  10. ^ "Morgunblaðið - 292. tölublað (28.10.2003) - Tímarit.is". timarit.is. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  11. ^ "Frjáls verslun - 5. tölublað (01.05.2005) - Tímarit.is". timarit.is. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  12. ^ a b Bowers, Simon (8 March 2010). "Icelandic tycoons could regain control of empire built on debt". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  13. ^ Mason, Rowena. "Deloitte under scrutiny over sale of Bakkavor stake". Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  14. ^ "Shareholders' meeting of Bakkavör Group hf on 26 March 2010". Global Newswire. 22 March 2010. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  15. ^ Bowers, Simon (25 September 2012). "Icelandic sandwich tycoon Lydur Gudmundsson faces fraud charges". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  16. ^ "UK: Bakkavor sells stake in Italian asset". Just Food. 8 May 2014. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  17. ^ "Bakkavor Group buys B. Robert's Foods of Charlotte". Biz Journals. 12 January 2015. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  18. ^ Hipwell, Deirdre. "Fresh owners for Bakkavör". The Times.
  19. ^ "Chickpeas suspected source of hummus taste issues". Food Quality. 27 April 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  20. ^ "Bakkavor revives IPO one week after shelving it due to 'market volatility". The Telegraph. 10 November 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
  21. ^ "Bakkavor agrees to acquire Blueberry Foods in UK". www.foodprocessing-technology.com. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  22. ^ "Bakkavor Group CEO and co-founder to retire". Food Management Today. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  23. ^ "Unite leader Sharon Graham meets striking Bakkavor food factory workers". BBC News. 16 October 2024. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  24. ^ Speed, Madeleine; Onita, Laura (11 November 2024). "UK shoppers hit by taramasalata shortage after strike". Financial Times. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  25. ^ "London Stock Exchange welcomes Bakkavör Group plc to the main market". London Stock Exchange. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
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