2019 – Kersia, the global leader in food safety, announces the acquisition of Choisy Laboratories (“Choisy”), a leading developer and manufacturer of chemical, biotechnological and biosecurity hygiene solutions based in Canada, from the Trudeau family and Champlain Financial Corporation, in partnership with the Alberta Teachers’ Retirement Fund.

This transaction grows Kersia’s geographical footprint in North America, allowing the company to expand its presence in new sub-segments and to acquire new technologies; it has been completed with the support of Ardian, its majority shareholder.

Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Louiseville (Quebec), Choisy focuses on research, manufacturing and marketing of food safety & biosecurity solutions, with a strong focus on value-added products, notably with eco-labelled solutions thanks to its biotechnological capabilities as well as its strong enzymatic know-how. The company employs 250 people and is primarily active in the Food Service and Hospitality market segments across eastern Canada and in Europe.

With this acquisition, Kersia’s network will comprise 23 plants (o/w 16 owned), with c.1,200 employees and a turnover of c.€250 million. This is Kersia’s fifth strategic acquisition since its acquisition by Ardian in October 2016.

Sebastien Bossard, CEO of Kersia, said: “This acquisition is in line with Kersia’s growth strategy and ambition to become the world’s leading player in Food Safety solutions for the entire food chain from farm to fork. Combining the deep R&D and technological expertise of Choisy and Kersia’s teams, with the support of Ardian, grows our international footprint substantially and strengthens our offering. The complementarity between our two companies is strong, as are the common values we share. We are very pleased to welcome the Choisy team within our group.”

As far as Guy L. Trudeau, President and CEO of the Choisy Group is concerned, he declared: « I’m excited to conclude this transaction because of the great cultural and technological complementarities, as well as the growth opportunities and synergies that will be generated. The food industry and the professional hygiene markets will greatly benefit from the new modern alternatives in biosafety and food service hygiene solutions represented by the Choisy-Kersia offer. I am convinced that the conjunction of the Choisy-Kersia brands will serve as a value and growth accelerator for the company, its employees and shareholders in North America and Europe. »

Thibault Basquin, Head of Americas Investments and Managing Director at Ardian Buyout, added: ”The Ardian team is very proud of what we have achieved with Sebastien Bossard and the Kersia team over the past two years, particularly in terms of Kersia’s transformation. I would like to thank the Trudeau family for entrusting Kersia as the new home for Choisy. This is a great step in our ambitious international development plans, and we look forward to further supporting Kersia’s journey towards growth.”

Ardian is a world-leading private investment house with assets of US$96bn managed or advised in Europe, the Americas and Asia. The company is majority-owned by its employees. It keeps entrepreneurship at its heart and focuses on delivering excellent investment performance to its global investor base.

Through its commitment to shared outcomes for all stakeholders, Ardian’s activities fuel individual, corporate and economic growth around the world.

Holding close its core values of excellence, loyalty and entrepreneurship, Ardian maintains a truly global network, with 610 employees working from fifteen offices across Europe (Frankfurt, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris and Zurich), the Americas (New York, San Francisco and Santiago) and Asia (Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo and Seoul). It manages funds on behalf of around 970 clients through five pillars of investment expertise: Funds of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate and Private Debt.
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Kersia is a global leader in biosecurity and food safety with value added products and solutions to prevent diseases or contamination in both animal and humans at every stage of the food supply chain.

Kersia is the name adopted in 2018 by Hypred, Antigerm, Medentech, LCB Food Safety, G3 and Kilco, experts in their fields which came together in 2017 and 2018, bringing together complementary skills and expertise that improve farm performance and add value to the food industry.

Now present in more than 90 countries and employs more than 1,200 personnel, Kersia records a turnover of 250 million euros.

Choisy is seventy-three years of research, development and know-how dedicated to innovation and the creation of added value for the protection of health, working environments, consumer and leisure environments. It is chemistry, biotechnology and application-based biological services at the service of the environment for a healthy environment.

Founded by Yvon G. Trudeau, B.A. and B.Sc., pioneer in professional hygiene in Canada, Choisy has always distinguished itself through the development of its own chemical and biological platforms or bases and through the technological innovation of its products and services.

A fully integrated company from chemical and biological scientific research to the commercialization of its formulas, products and application services, the Choisy Group has 250 employees in four divisions: Choisy Laboratories, GDG Environment, Mikadoweb Solutions and RMS Equipments/Services. These complementary business divisions are all articulated from the head office located in Louiseville, Qc, where the production and research & development activities for Hygiene Solutions are mainly located. The Group also operates three distribution centres and four business centres in Eastern Canada, in addition to the headquarters of GDG Environment located in Trois-Rivières, Quebec and RMS Equipments/Services located in Laval, Quebec.