Squarefield acted as exclusive financial advisor to Dutch Seafood Company on the sale of Klaas Puul to Sykes Seafood

On 24 March 2020, UK seafood processor Sykes Seafood (“Sykes”) acquired Klaas Puul (“Klaas Puul” or the “Company”), the shrimp processing activities of Dutch Seafood Company (“DSC”) which is majority controlled by H2 Equity Partners (“H2”). Klaas Puul will add extensive experience in the processing of different shrimp species which complements Sykes’ current operations. By unlocking the envisaged synergies and further investing in both companies’ sourcing and processing capabilities, a pan-European shrimp business is created.

The management teams of Klaas Puul and Sykes fundamentally believe this acquisition will support the business going forward as each company has its expertise and best practice to be shared. The infrastructure provided and ongoing investments will support Klaas Puul’s operations within the newly created platform, to the benefit of its clients.

Klaas Puul

Founded in 1968, Klaas Puul, headquartered in Volendam, the Netherlands, is a leading processor of North Sea shrimps, cold water and tropical sea shrimps. In 2018, Klaas Puul merged with smoked salmon processor Foppen Groep (“Foppen”) to create a more diversified seafood processing company under the name DSC. After the disposal of the shrimp activities DSC will focus on smoked salmon processing only.

Sykes Seafood

Sykes, headquartered in Manchester, United Kingdom, is a leading processor of a wide range of high-quality seafood products distributed to the retail, foodservice and manufacturing sectors in the UK. Sykes is well-known for its global sourcing of raw materials through long-standing joint venture relationships.

André van der Padt – CEO of DSC: “Squarefield assisted us in the divestment through a difficult time (Corona-crisis). Their persistence and knowledge of the market, as well as the buyer and seller, helped enormously in closing this transaction.”