Souter strengthens presence in green sector with £2m deal

Published on Wednesday 9 June 2010 21:08

STAGECOACH boss Brian Souter has teamed up with the management of a specialist provider to the food and drink industry in a £2 million deal to buy the firm from its parent company.

Nutrafeed, part of Midlands-based Reconomy, provides by-product and waste recycling services to food and drink manufacturers, supermarkets and logistics businesses across Britain.

Souter Investments sees the deal as strengthening its involvement in the environmental and recycling sector.

It already owns the majority stake in Argent Energy, a Scottish-based business which converts organic waste in to biodiesel.

For Reconomy the sale is part of its strategy of focusing its business on the provision of recycling services for the print, construction, manufacturing, municipal, leisure and utilities industries.

Patrick Macdonald, chief executive of Reconomy Group, said "I am pleased that Souter is purchasing Nutrafeed. The sale will support the future development of the business and helps Reconomy realise its new focus."

Souter Investments is the private investment vehicle of the Stagecoach founder and chief executive. It operates separately from Stagecoach group.

Souter said of the deal: "Nutrafeed provides a unique and valuable waste management service to its customers and we are confident that we have backed a strong management team that can grow the business over the coming years."

The management team and employees are transferring with Nutrafeed, which operates modern processing plants in Corby, Northamptonshire and Wrexham.

Ivan Taggart, Nutrafeed director, said: "We are delighted that we have secured the acquisition with Souter Investments. We are looking forward to continuing the rapid growth of the business by expanding its client base and range of services."

Reconomy was advised by Mark Whelan of KPMG.

Souter Investments has more than 300 investments in listed and private companies

Last week Souter invested 9.5m as part of a consortium that acquired a majority stake in yacht builder Sunseeker International.