Advent picks up minority stake in Iscon Balaji Foods in a $150 mn deal

Mumbai: Private equity (PE) investor Advent has bought a minority stake in Gujarat’s Iscon Balaji Foods (IBF) in a $150 million deal, the companies said in a joint statement on Tuesday, without sharing specifics of the transaction. The investment is part of a broader $215 million fundraise by IBF which has also been backed by local asset management firm 360 One. IBF makes and exports a range of frozen potato snacks such as French fries and hash browns. Besides supplying its products to quick service restaurants and food-service distributors, it also retails its frozen foods under the brand Hungritos to consumers. Of late, a lot of foreign PE capital has been chasing the wider local foods space as investors look to diversify their portfolios and bet on segments driving India’s consumption growth. Households are now spending more on different ranges of snacks and experimenting with new brands and flavours on the back of higher disposable incomes and exposure to newer food recipes. Earlier this year, General Atlantic bought a minority stake in Balaji Wafers while L Catterton, Temasek, IHC and Alpha Wave Global picked up stakes in Haldiram Snacks Food last year, valuing the company at $10 billion. Founded in 2012, IBF is a joint venture entity of Balaji Wafers and Iscon Group, operating in the estimated $60 billion global frozen potato products market. IBF, Advent and Avendus which acted as financial advisor to IBF did not respond to queries on valuation and the amount of shareholding investors acquired in the company. Advent, which has investments across sectors in India, also has a stake in snack maker DFM Foods known for its brand Crax. IBF rivals players such as McCain Foods and HyFun Foods. “Advent is the right partner for what comes next, bringing not just capital, but a strategic sounding board on the big decisions ahead, valuable relationships and deep operational expertise from scaling businesses internationally,” said Neel Kotak, CEO at IBF.

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