Metro AG, the €30bn-turnover German food wholesale giant, has acquired UK-based foodservice delivery specialist Caterite Food & Wineservice for an undisclosed sum.
Caterite, which is based near Cockermouth, supplies over 2,000 HoReCa customers, offering a mix of locally and internationally sourced food complemented with products from its own production facilities. Caterite generated revenues of £44m in 2023.
The wholesaler’s range features fresh and frozen food, groceries, value-added products (Caterite brand) as well as beverages (Grapevine brand). Key customer segments include hotels, restaurants, bars and cafés, which are supplied from three sites with a fleet of 70 trucks. Some 60% of sales are processed via the company’s online shop.
Metro stated that Caterite’s regional focus on the Lake District and adjacent regions will help it expand its activities to the northern parts of the UK.
The German firm already owns foodservice distribution specialist Classic Fine Foods, which supplies customers primarily in the greater London area, South West and central parts of the UK.
Caterite will initially continue to operate under its established brands and in its existing form, with synergetic collaboration with Classic Fine Foods in areas such as assortment, sourcing, knowledge transfer, and logistic network.
Lorcan Byrne, Managing Director of Caterite, commented: “Having traded as an independently-owned family business for over 50 years, the time has come for us to join something new. Over the years, we have had multiple expressions of interest in our unique business and have always professionally declined any advances. However, on this occasion we believe we have found our perfect partner.
“Metro are an elite global foodservice powerhouse. Their philosophy, product range and objectives are almost identical to our own: fresh products, ingredients and innovative tech solutions – we have so many synergies. With £25bn global annual sales, distinct sourcing capabilities and a history of successfully acquiring and integrating a number of foodservice specialists in recent years, we feel we have an exciting future ahead.
“The industry landscape is changing, and demand for investment to continue driving our business forward has never been greater. We have ambitious plans to expand our services across the UK through collaboration with Classic Fine Foods UK and to enhance our distribution centre in the Lake District, and we now have greater financial backing and expertise to enable us to do that.”
Guillaume Deruyter, member of the management board of Metro AG and responsible for its FSD businesses, added: “We are delighted to welcome the successful foodservice specialist Caterite as another member of our international Food Service Distribution (FSD) family. Metro sees the acquisition as an opportunity to grow in the attractive UK HoReCa market and to create synergies with Classic Fine Foods UK. This brings us closer to our strategic goal of successively expanding the share of delivery in total sales.”
