Food manufacturer The Compleat Food Group has acquired SK Foods and Gwent-based Zorba Foods from The Entrepreneurial Food Group for an undisclosed figure.

The two food businesses are category leaders in private label chilled party foods and dips and deli fillings, with a combined turnover of more than £160m and more than 1,150 employees.

Backed by European private equity firm PAI Partners, The Compleat Food Group was formed in 2021 and currently employs more than 3,800 people across 10 sites with an annual turnover in excess of £0.75bn.

It is home to leading brands Pork Farms, Wall’s Pastry, unearthed, Vadasz, Squeaky Bean, Wrights and its most recent addition Palace Culture.

Ebbw Vale-based Zorba Foods was formed in 1976. Now employing nearly 380 people, it started out creating authentic Greek houmous, before expanding to cover a range of Greek, traditional, Tex Mex and Asian-inspired dips and sauces, alongside soups, for retail and foodservice.

It holds around 25 per cent share of the private label dips market and became part of the Entrepreneurial Food Group in 2003.

Nick Field, CEO at The Compleat Food Group, said: “We’re incredibly excited about these two significant additions and what they bring to the group, with both companies having strong heritage in their categories for creating great food that people love.

"We plan to continue investment in both companies to extend their respective capabilities, allowing us to further innovate and inspire within their categories."

Jeremy Faulkner, CEO of both SK Foods and Zorba, said: “At the heart of both SK Foods and Zorba is a commitment to real food values. It’s what our reputations have been founded on and why we are able to say that we are category leaders.

“With The Compleat Food Group, we have found a natural partner who not only shares our values, but also the ambition to invest and support us in driving further innovation and growth for our categories and key partners.”