Activ International acquires NJ-based Summit Hill Flavors

12-Oct-2010 - Last updated on 13-Oct-2010 at 11:07 GMT

Activ International Group has acquired New Jersey-based Summit Hill Flavors in order to expand its presence in the United States’ savory flavors market, the company has said.

Summit Hill Flavors has been developing, manufacturing and marketing natural savory flavors and extracts at its Middlesex, New Jersey facility since 1990, with particular expertise in meat and chicken flavoring, Activ International said. Activ specializes in seafood flavors and natural colorings.

The company’s sales manager Eric Dufour told FoodNavigator-USA.com: “Activ is a group that has companies as close to customers as possible…The idea was to have a site to produce our seafood flavors in the United States.”

He said that until the acquisition – which saw Activ taking 100 percent ownership of Summit Hill Flavors on June 30, 2010 – the company had sold relatively small quantities of its seafood flavors to US customers, but had not had a manufacturing facility there. The France-based company has sites around the world, including a sales office in Seattle, Washington, but the New Jersey facility is its first manufacturing plant on US soil.

“Our field of application includes soups, ready meals and surimi, or crab sticks,” Dufour said.

The Summit Hill Flavors acquisition enlarges Activ’s savory flavor range to include meat and poultry, vegetable, seafood, grill and other specialty flavors, alongside its range of natural colors.

Summit Hill Flavors employs about 40 people, and Activ does not intend to alter the staff structure, Dufour said.

“We will keep the existing management and Dr. Jurgen Scheide remains in place as general manager. There is no reason to change the structure…We have known the company for a long time and it was a perfect fit for us to enlarge our site in the United States.”

As a privately held company, Activ International would not disclose the financial terms of the deal, nor information about the recent financial performance of Summit Hill Flavors.