Italian dairy expands into France

Granarolo, Italy’s largest processor and distributor of yogurt and one of the country’s leading suppliers of both fresh and matured cheeses, has taken over a French cheese dairy as part of an international expansion strategy. The new acquisition is CIPF Codipal, itself a distributor of quality Italian cheeses with a claimed 20% of the French market for the Italian wares. Codipal French cheeses include St Colombe, St Omar and “Blue House” products.

Granarolo celebrates its 40th anniversary this year with a succession of relatively recent takeovers giving its present seven processing plants and wide range of cheeses from fresh mascarpone and ricotta through to matured cheeses such as pecorino, sfiziosino, Parmigiano reggiano and grana padadno. Turnover is around €300 million. CIPF Codipal (turnover: around €100m) is based in the eastern French city of Metz with three plants including one in Pas de Calais and another in Savoy.