Orkla has signed an agreement to sell its sauce and ready meal SaritaS brand to Indian Gourmet AS, as it seeks to simplify its portfolio.
The deal was made through its subsidiary, Orkla Foods Norge, and includes full disposal of the Indian SaritaS brand, which has a product portfolio consisting of sauces and ready meals.
A newly established company, Indian Gourmet AS is co-owned by Janton AS and Taste of India AS.
Taste of India AS is owned by the initial founders of the SaritaS brand, Sarita Sehjpal and Raj Sharma.
“Sarita and Raj have played a unique role in developing the culture of Indian food in Norway, and we are delighted that they will continue to build the SaritaS brand in partnership with Janton AS,” said Paul Jordahl, CEO of Orkla Foods Norway.
Jordahl added: “The sale is part of Orkla’s strategy to concentrate resources on our priority growth areas.”
The sauce and ready-meal brand joined Orkla’s portfolio during its acquisition of Rieber & Søn in 2013, which purchased the brand from its owners the year before.
According to the consumer goods company, SaritaS products contributed NOK 20 million ($2.15 million) to its net sales revenues in 2019.
Orkla Foods Norge was created by the merger of Stabburet and Toro in 2013.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The agreement will take effect as of 2 March 2020.
In July last year, Orkla Foods Danmark offloaded its Glyngøre seafood brand to reduce its portfolio complexity and concentrate on prioritised categories.
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