India-based seafood marketplace Captain Fresh has reached an agreement to purchase 100 percent of Barcelona, Spain-based tuna company Frime.

Frime, founded in 1937, specializes in yellowfin tuna products imported from around the world. The company operates several factories in Barcelona processing tuna into different products with a specialization in loins and slices, Frime President Salvador Ramon told SeafoodSource during the 2024 Seafood Expo Global.

El Economista reported the company has a turnover of EUR 180 million (USD 211 million) and produces 15,000 metric tons (MT) of tuna each year from its facilities.

Antarctica Advisors Managing Partner Ignacio Kleiman told SeafoodSource his firm was the exclusive sell side adviser to Frime and that the company was looking to capitalize on its recent post-Covid success and continue its expansion trajectory.

“The company went through a very strong growth phase,” Kleiman said. “Essentially, they realized there was a good opportunity to join a stronger group because these days, larger is better – particularly because they wanted to expand further outside Spain.”

Captain Fresh’s acquisition of Frime gives it an avenue into the tuna market, and in turn, Frime can capitalize on the market access Captain Fresh has built in the U.S.

Kleiman said Captain Fresh found like-minded management when it met with Frime. Frime’s management has focused on new technology and modern processing equipment and runs one of the most advanced tuna-processing facilities in the world in Barcelona.

“They [Captain Fresh] met the people at Frime, and they were extremely impressed by the company’s culture; both shareholders and managers are very progressive and outward looking,” Kleiman said.

Ramon told SeafoodSource in 2024 that he was aiming to put lots of money into new technology, including a “white room” that allowed it to be a provider of raw tuna products.

“We have a lab in the room [where] we can analyze something like 100 samples of histamines every 20 minutes. That means we have very high quality controls,” he said at the time. “We can guarantee to the final customer that you can eat this raw. That is a big innovation.”

Kleiman said the acquisition is 100 percent from an economic point of view, but Frime will remain a relatively independent entity.

“All of the management is staying put because they’re going to integrate with Captain Fresh’s operations all over the world, and the majority shareholder is staying put as well because he believes in the project and likes the Captain Fresh people,” Kleiman said. “The deal is struck, and it is now in antitrust approvals in Spain, which we expect will happen shortly.”

The move to acquire Frime follows other acquisitions Captain Fresh has made in the seafood space.

It acquired Central Seaway Company (CenSea) in early 2024, giving it access to one of the largest shrimp importers in the U.S. It later acquired Polish salmon smoker Koral in July 2024, making its first foray into the salmon market.

 

SOURCE: seafoodsource.com

Global seafood consolidation is accelerating, fueled by cash-rich buyers, private equity, technology adoption and resilient demand.

Seafood M&A activity is expected to remain robust in the coming months, following a strong performance in the first half of 2025, according to investment experts who spoke with IntraFish.

According to an IntraFish tally, a total of 34 deals have closed so far this year.

The volume of deal activity is driven by companies needing to adapt to a range of evolving factors, including resource access, regulatory shifts, technological advances, geopolitical dynamics and sustainability challenges, Jon Gardar Gudmundsson, a partner at MAR Advisors, told IntraFish.

“The mega trends in the industry are the same as always, and those support consolidation. The industry is still fragmented, with high volatility of fishing volumes and prices, supported by high demand,” he said.

Ignacio Kleiman, managing partner at investment banking firm Antarctica Advisors, said that despite concerns earlier in the year about tariffs potentially slowing deals, the market has remained resilient across the global supply chain.

“To be frank, my expectations during the first half of the year were that things were going to slow down a bit, but that has not been the case.”

Some producers absorbed a portion of tariff costs, while distributors passed onhigher prices to consumers, helping maintain margins, Kleiman noted.

“The industry has been pretty nimble in trying to find ways to minimize theimpact of the tariff. It all depends where in the value chain you are,” he said.

“Strategic players have been doing very well,” Kleiman added. “They are cash-richor have been reducing debt aggressively. Private equity is definitely cash-rich. Banks continue to lend and support the M&A activity actively. So I’m happy to saythat things are good.”

Different subsectors can have different drivers for M&A, depending on where inthe value chain a company sits, Gudmundsson said.

Overall, the seafood industry does benefit from economies of scale, “and I don’tsee many companies that want to remain small with a niche focus,” he added.

Regional factors create challenges, as well as opportunities.

In Iceland, for example, time will tell whether its recent legislation on increasedfisheries fees could lead to further M&A. In Norway, it remains to be seewhether management teams wait or push ahead with M&A ahead of the generalelection this autumn.

So far, this year has seen quite a lot of activity on the M&A side and this willintensify once pending new regulations in Norway and elsewhere really comeinto play and become effective, Norway-based Seafood Corporate Advisorspartner Jorgen Horntvedt said.

Norway is expected to remain a hub for everything in aquaculture, includingdeals. Norwegian players can, however, put value both inside and outside ofNorway.

The pending general election in Norway this autumn could result in lower taxeswith a surge in investments as a potential effect if the Conservative side gets amajority, which then could put capital “into productive use.” Horntvedt said.

Horntvedt cautioned that deals will not continue to increase at their current paceif the low salmon prices remain. “People and companies need to make money topay for deals.”

Further deals in the feed space, for example, will likely hinge on Mowi’s sale of itsfeed business and the potential valuation of it if divested.

A sale or no sale of the Mowi division, could come with a bit of soul searchingfrom feed and other seafood companies on how to improve their businessmodels, increase efficiencies, and consider upsrteam and downstream inclusionsvia acquisitions.

Technology is a driver

The technology space is also likely to see high deal activity going forward, partlyas new technologies are creating competitive advantages and companies need tobe able to invest to stay in the game.

“This drives M&A,” Gudmundsson said.

Horntvedt also anticipates the tech sector will drive deals.

“It goes without saying that a technology shift will eventually happen on allaspects that monitor fish. Deep tech companies will increasingly be targeted byinvestors, including from VC firms up to industry buyers,” Horntvedt said.

Despite potential hiccups and macro-economic uncertainty, activity for theremainder of the year will likely remain high, Gudmundsson said.

“The current global uncertainty can also create opportunities.”

“We always need to be on our toes in this industry. One part of this is toconstantly look for opportunities to acquire, merge or sell off assets,” Gudmundsson said.

Big deals so far

The seafood M&A year kicked off with a bang when Mowi announced it wouldpay NOK 7.4 billion (€629 million/$655 million) to gain control of fellowNorwegian producer Nova Sea in a deal that would boost its global productioncapacity by around 10 percent.

That same month, Indian supply chain platform Captain Fresh completed theacquisition of Polish smoked salmon processor Koral.

In another standout deal, US-based Silver Bay Seafoods took a stake in Alaskarival OBI Seafoods, securing control over a major volume of the state’s wildsalmon harvest.

 

SOURCE: IntraFish

More than 75 seafood mergers and acquisitions were reported last year by IntraFish.

Top investment advisors in the seafood sector are optimistic about a rise in M&A activity in 2025 following a strong 2024.

More than 75 seafood mergers and acquisitions were reported last year by IntraFish, from strategic investments and acquisitions of significant minority stakes to full-blown, billion-dollar takeovers.

Jorgen Horntvedt, partner at Seafood Corporate Advisors, a Norway-based Seafood M&A and strategy firm, expects 2025 to be a busy year for M&A in the seafood space, in part because the underlying market for closing deals is good, he said.

Stock markets and debt markets are currently strong, aspects which lead companies to want to strengthen their operations and scale via M&A, he said.

Sectors likely to experience M&A activity in the coming year include tech-related companies, with buyers in this space typically being venture capital firms, private equity firms and family offices

“The tech sector will continue to grow as salmon farmers continue to benefit from tech advancements,” Horntvedt said.

Feed ingredients, which are strategically important for the industry as a whole, are expected to drive many smaller transactions to scale, he said.

There could also be significant deals between salmon farmers during the year, as these groups want to take advantage of economies of scale, Horntvedt said. Processors also benefit from scale and deals could be seen between them.

Smaller bolt-on deals will also feature high during the year, and M&A here could include salmon farmers looking for companies downstream and those that can supply raw material.

Uncertain times

However, while global stock markets generally are strong, times are currently also unpredictable.

“The seafood sector is resilient and generally does well when markets are more uncertain,” Horntvedt said.

From a US perspective, the improved outlook comes after a strong year of gains in the investment market and with presidential elections now done and dusted, Ignacio Kleiman, managing partner at investment banking firm Antarctica Advisors.

Kleiman said 2024 was a good year for his firm. Since the end of 2023, among others, Antarctica Advisors has advised on Indian supply chain platform Captain Fresh’s acquisition of Polish smoked salmon processor Koral, German food giant Unternehmensgruppe and Theo Muller (UTM)’s move to acquire Polish seafood company Graal Group.

One potential stumbling block, particularly in the United States, Kleiman said, could be the imposition of tariffs by the second Trump administration.

“With regards to the seafood industry, I think one of the questions in the United States, in general, is whether the industry is going to be hit by tariffs,” Kleiman told IntraFish.

Donald Trump, who won November’s US presidential election by defeating Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, has threatened to impose tariffs of at least 60 percent on Chinese goods, as well as 10 to 20 percent on products from other countries.

Such a move would be unlikely to find much support among US industrial seafood buyers and household consumers, who end up footing the bill.

“It must be remembered that 90 percent or so of fish consumption in the United States is imported,” Kleiman said.

While Kleiman said it is currently unclear how the tariff situation will play out, he thinks that if the economy continues as expected and interest rates continue to fall this will help reduce companies’ financial costs and also make M transactions more attractive.

The investment expert said the cost-inefficient seafood industry characterized by many mid-sized and small players would benefit from consolidation between competitors.

“If you manage to control your costs better and maybe even reduce your prices, then the food is a much more competitive protein and that is going to be good for the sector in general, for the industry in general,” Kleiman said.

A great mix of transactions in 2024 showed opportunities in different places and sectors in the fish economy, he noted.

“I think this year I would expect more consolidation in processing and distribution,” he said.

Looking at the wider picture, leading investment firms Barclays, Boston, Morg Stanley and KPMG are largely upbeat about prospects for a revival in mergers and acquisitions in their outlooks, thanks in part to what they expect will be falling interest rates and a more relaxed regulatory climate.

 

SOURCE: IntraFish

 

Camanchaca and Grupo Bio Bio sought arbitration to resolve a disagreement relating to the sale of a 30 percent stake in Camanchaca’s Pesca Sur pelagic division.

Chilean seafood giant Camanchaca will have to pay $87.2 million (€80.5 million) to acquire the 30 percent stake in its PescaSur fisheries division it doesn’t already own.

Camanchaca and Grupo Bio Bio sought arbitration to resolve a disagreement relating to the sale of a 30 percent stake in Camanchaca’s Pesca Sur pelagic division.

Camanchaca currently owns 70 percent of Pesca Sur and Bio Bio 30 percent.

Under an agreement, Camanchaca is obliged to acquire Bio Bio’s full stake should it opt to sell. In mid-September, Bio Bio informed Camanchaca of its intention to do so.

Bio Bio will receive payment via dividends distributed through Camanchaca Pesca Sur.

Two unnamed investment banks working as arbitrators, delivered an average valuation of $290.75 million (€268.4 million) for PescaSur as a whole, Camanchaca said in a note to the Santiago Stock Exchange.

The companies themselves put widely differing vales on Pesca Sur, with Bio Bio valuing the division at $93.2 million (€90.2 million) and Camanchaca offering $48 million (€46.5 million).

Under the terms of the agreement with valuations varying by more than 10 percent, the sale price would have to be adjudicated by an investment bank or a mutually agreeable expert.

The Camanchaca Pesca Sur Division boasts a fleet of five deep-sea purse seine vessels and four crustacean fishing vessels. It also operates four separate canning, frozen products, crustaceans and fishmeal and fish oil processing plants.

Camanchaca CEO Ricardo Garcia told attendees at the North Atlantic Seafood Forum in March that the acquisition will be the largest by the company “in years, “bringing the profitable and growing division fully under its control.

Camanchaca Pesca Sur was established as a joint venture between Camanchaca and Chile’s Stengel family in 2011. The division harvests and processes primarily jack mackerel, sardines and anchovies. Camanchaca Pesca Sur primarily serves the African market.

Miami-based Antarctica Advisors advised the sellers on the transaction.

 

SOURCE: Intrafish

 

Global economic upheaval has not put a dampener on seafood industry consolidation this year.

The seafood processing, aquaculture, fisheries and aquatech sectors have shown a surprising amount of merger and acquisition (M&A) activity so far in 2024, reflecting both investor enthusiasm and the ongoing need for consolidation.

Deals slowed in 2023 from the year prior. An IntraFish tally showed 77 acquisitions, mergers and significant investment stakes in 2023 — a 7 percent decline over 2022. However, based on the pace so far in 2024, it is conceivable that this year will reach that level, if not higher.

IntraFish on reported over 60 mergers, acquisitions or substantial stake sales through the first nine months of the year.

Ignacio Kleiman, principal at Antarctica Advisors, a boutique seafood advisory group, told IntraFish that this year shows the appetite for some industry players to continue much-needed consolidation on the processing and distribution side in particular.

“It’s been a year of consolidation,” he said. “It’s been a year with larger deals that were more prominent, as opposed to a whole bunch of small deals last year.”

Kleiman noted that some of the larger players with “more imagination” took advantage of supply chain inefficiencies. Japanese giants were among the deal-makers this year, as were Canadian group Cooke, Norwegian firms SalMar, Nergard and Pelagia, and biopharma behemoth MSD.

Kleiman said the recent rate cut by the US Federal Reserve, though it may not have an immediate impact, is building confidence among owners that may have been reluctant to start discussions.

The fourth quarter is also a notorious period for inking deals, so it’s inevitable that the industry will see more come through, according to Kleiman. Though he expects to see consolidation in processing and distribution in particular, the fragmentation across the industry means there are many more deals to come across the entire value chain.

“There has to be more integration and more consolidation…just because that’s a way of capturing more margin and generating a substantial level of synergies,” Kleiman said.

One sector that should be more acquisitive than it has been, given its size and strength, is the Norwegian salmon farming sector, he said.

“They continue to do exactly the same thing they were doing 10 years ago, as opposed to looking for a way of diversifying into other species.”

Anne Hvistendahl, global head of seafood at DNB, the world’s largest lender to the seafood industry, said the Norwegian salmon industry has plenty of consolidation to tackle in its own backyard, with around 80 salmon farmers in Norway.

“Things will happen, and we have mandates in that direction,” Hvistendahl told IntraFish. “You have generational change, so over time there will be fewer players in Norway and in Chile.”
Both in Norway and across borders, the industry can expect to see more deals come to fruition in the salmon sector, but if owners are happy with their operations, it’s difficult to convince them to think about consolidation, Hvistendahl said.

Dag Sletmo, senior advisor for DNB Seafood, put it bluntly: “Everybody wants to buy, and nobody wants to sell.”

Listen to our full conversation with Kleiman on the most recent episode of the IntraFish Podcast, and follow us on Apple and Spotify to hear our upcoming\ conversation with Hvistendahl and Sletmo.

Listen the PODCAST here.