Milarex
Health and climate action
Company details
Year Aquired
2017
Location
Norway/Poland
Revenue (2020)
2 710 mSEK
Sector
Fish processing
Employees
1663
Investment Themes
Resource Efficiency
Contact
If you want to know more about Milarex please contact Joakim Sundby Johansen at: joakim.johansen@summaequity.com
Website
Milarex at a glance
Milarex operates within the secondary processing part of the value chain, focusing on salmon value-added products. The company was established in 2016 and has in a short time taken a leading position within value-added processing of salmon globally, producing 21m kilos of edible products in 2020. The company is headquartered in Norway with manufacturing and other operations in Poland as well as sales and distribution offices across Germany, Italy, UK, and France. In 2021, Milarex expanded to North America through the acquisition of its exclusive distributor, Ultco. Milarex operates one of the world’s most advanced salmon processing factories, which is well invested and has ample room to cater for growth going forward.
Key developments in 2020
Milarex has performed well during 2020, delivering 25% top-line growth supported by strong demand in the retail segment. The company has experienced high growth in markets such as Italy, France, and North America, where Milarex expects continued strong momentum going forward.
Milarex has taken a leadership role in sustainable practices in the salmon processing industry. They have set ambitious targets and have in 2020 launched a fish traceability platform, introduced fully recyclable plastics in its consumer brand Arctic Fish, and launched a sustainable best practice product ‘Pure Green’ under the same brand.
With the recent acquisition of the US distributor Ultco, Milarex is well positioned to further ramp up its efforts in North America, representing a new growth chapter for the company.
Impact Dimensions
The challenges we face
The world population is estimated to reach 8.6 billion people by 2030, implying a demand for 35% more food than what we have available today. On a global basis, more than 1.9 million adults are classified as overweight, representing a need for a healthier diet to combat the disease. Also, of the total GHG emissions that we have today, approximately 14.5% is due to livestock. These challenges represent opportunities for healthy protein producers, such as Milarex, to step up by increasing volume and improving the efficiency of food production.
What is the outcome?
By providing a safe, healthy, affordable source of food protein6 and achieving a high ratio of fish-in-food-out (yield), Milarex helps cover the world’s growing nutrition needs (SDG 2, SDG 3). Farm-raised salmon are amongst the healthiest and most nutrient-dense protein sources and is often described as a “Superfood” (Harvard Health Publishing). Its benefits to human health are well-documented (SDG 3).
Replacing other, more carbon-intensive, protein sources, such as livestock, with salmon, reduces GHG emissions. Milarex promotes a sustainable production cycle from sourcing to delivery: The company acts to ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns (SDG 12) by sourcing sustainability-certified salmon (93% of the company’s raw materials in 2020). Milarex is also reducing packaging, has introduced recyclable plastics and will switch to 100% green electricity at its factory during H2 2021.
Who are the stakeholders?
Milarex mainly sells its products to consumers through retailers in Germany, Eastern Europe, Italy, UK, France, North America and Australia.
Salmon is a healthy and premium protein; increasing the availability through affordable solutions makes salmon more accessible for more consumers.
How big is the effect, and does it last?
Milarex sold around 21 m kilos of edible products in 2020. Going forward, the company expects a continued stable demand for salmon on the back of increasing health and sustainability awareness amongst consumers.
If Milarex didn’t exist…
By improving consumer access to healthy, safe, sustainable, and affordable proteins, Milarex has a meaningful impact on our society. Milarex strives to be the benchmark for safe and sustainable salmon processing by its strong food safety culture and sustainability commitments. Through selling processed fish with a longer shelf life, and utilizing the whole fish by selling by-products, Milarex contributes to reducing food waste.
Impact risk: what can go wrong?
The quality of Milarex’s products is dependent on the quality of sourced raw materials.
Though regulations of salmon farming are strict, the industry still has challenges in biology, animal welfare and sustainable farming practices. Salmon farmers have always faced challenges head-on by using science-based approaches to continue to improve their operations and average product quality.
Year Aquired
2017
Revenue (2020)
2 710 mSEK
Employees
1663
Investment Themes
Resource Efficiency
Sector
Fish processing
Location
Norway/Poland
Contact
If you want to know more about Milarex please contact Joakim Sundby Johansen at: joakim.johansen@summaequity.com
Website
Video
SDG Alignment
KPI reporting
REVENUE (SEKm)
CONVERSION RATIO
Raw material to edible product
TONS OF EDIBLE PRODUCT
SUSTAINABLE RAW MATERIALS
With certificates from either ACS, Global GAP or MSC
Learn more about Milarex
Portfolio Story
Summa Equity acquires Milarex
Summa Equity has acquired 75% of Milarex, a value-added processing company in the salmon industry, from the founder, Jerzy Malek. Summa Equity is a thematically-focused private equity investor with Seafood as one of the focus areas within its “Resource Scarcity” theme. “With a growing global population amidst global climate issues, the world needs healthy…
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