Eight Fifty Food Group to acquire Irish meat business M&M Walshe

Eight Fifty Food Group is set to acquire M&M Walshe, an Ireland-based business that delivers pork, bacon and sous-vide meat.

The financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

M&M Walshe is a family-run group established in 1981. According to its website, the company sells its products in 16 European countries and has recently forayed into Asia and Africa.

It has around 550 employees and trades as RibWorld, Callan Bacon and Stirchley Bacon.

M&M official John Walshe said: “The interest shown in our business is a great reflection of the quality of our products, our people and our loyal customer base.”

As agreed, the M&M Walshe will be integrated with Eight Fifty’s pork division, while its sous-vide products will complement existing offerings.

Eight Fifty Food Group owner CapVest Partners expects that the deal will help its subsidiary to achieve sales of up to £1.4bn. The combined firm will also employ more than 7,500 people across 19 sites in the UK and Ireland.

Eight Fifty Food Group CEO Di Walker said: “Eight Fifty have been working with the Walshe and Clohessy families for over 30 years and have seen their business grow significantly to become one of Europe’s largest sous-vide specialists today.

“We’re delighted to welcome M&M Walshe into the Eight Fifty Food Group and look forward to continuing growing with them.”

The closing of the acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and approval from the Irish Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.