Agri Terra acquires Frutana

    ASUNCIÓN, PARAGUAY, December 06, 2021 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The medium-sized producer of freshly squeezed orange juice and frozen fruit supplies many Asuncion hotels and restaurants, as well as international fast-food chains such as McDonald's, Pizza Hut, KFC or Burger King throughout Paraguay. Frutana is also a supplier of several gas station chains.

The Corona crisis had taken its toll on the company: under lock-down scenarios, its most important clients had stopped ordering products for months, while costs continued to run. Against the backdrop of an uncertain future, the company started to look for a strategic partner, and quickly reached an agreement with its number one choice, Agri Terra.

Last Monday, Paraguay Fresh S.A., the fresh juice unit under the umbrella of the Agri Terra Group, acquired 90% of Frutana's shares.

Convincing synergy effects
Agri Terra manages the third largest orange plantations in Paraguay and has also started the development of a state-of-the-art orange juice concentrate plant, which will be the largest in the country once completed. The Paraguay Fresh juice arm will supply supermarkets, hotels and restaurants with freshly squeezed fruit juice in the future. "The synergy effects convinced us immediately," said Carsten Pfau right after signing the contract. "Frutana has been known in Paraguay for a long time, it is a familiar name to many companies as an established traditional brand. Agri Terra has vast resources when it comes to fresh fruit, and in addition, our import and wholesale unit comes into play very elegantly here. The Frutana takeover gives us immediate access to important clients, which otherwise would have taken us most certainly a couple of years in brand development and market penetration," Pfau continues. The financial powerhouse will immediately invest further. "We have already ordered brand-new machines for the production of fresh juice, and we will also address the Paraguayan market with a professional advertising campaign," says Pfau. "Frutana is getting a whole new look under the Agri Terra umbrella."

Previous shareholders remain in the company
The previous owners will retain 10% of the shares, and founder Jorge Maciel will also continue to be responsible for managing Frutana. "Of course, we did not want to do without Jorge's (Maciel) expertise, know-how and, above all, the personal relationship with key clients he has grown over two decades. Also, it is usually difficult for a company founder to let go completely, and we took that into account. Business is tough, but you gotta have a heart, too. I think we found a perfect solution for all sides, and everyone left the meeting with their heads held up high," explains Carsten Pfau. The company will be renamed as Frutana Fresh.

Further acquisitions
Only recently Agri Terra had raised eyebrows with the purchase of mineral water producer Indusur. Now the group makes headlines with the take-over of Frutana. More acquisitions are to follow. "We have made another strategic move in order to expand our group, but we still have to keep quiet about it. Contracts have already been signed, but we are still bound by a confidentiality clause that expires very soon. It will only take a little bit longer until we can talk publicly about it" Pfau said cryptically.

It may just be good advice to look out for further announcements from Agri Terra Group.

About Agri Terra
The Agri Terra owners, German brothers Carsten and Michael Pfau, invest and conduct business in Paraguay since 1995. Successful real estate investors, the brothers shifted their focus towards agriculture over the years. Starting out with the purchase of farmland and small cattle investments, the brothers now manage under the Agri Terra umbrella large agro-projects all over Paraguay. The company is among the largest 1% of cattle owners (out of 142,000 total), and it operates the country's third largest orange plantation. Substantial investments in greenhouses (vegetable production for supermarkets) as well as other citrus plantations complete the portfolio. In addition, the group develops residential country clubs and invests in the field of landbanking.

Agri Terra only offers projects to investors if the company invests ist own funds into the project as well. Most of the times, Agri Terra is the single largest investor in a project.

Key executives in the company count with decades of experience in their respective fields of expertise. A combination of experience, expertise and dedication provides a solid base for the company's investments.

Headquartered in Munich, the Agri Terra Group is also registered in Austria, Panama, Paraguay and Hong Kong. In addition, the company counts with representatives for the US and Canada, Switzerland and Romania.

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