Scottish ice-cream cone and wafer maker Waverley Bakery has been bought by Nordic business Orkla Food Ingredients (OFI).

The Waverley Bakery manufactures a range of ice-cream cones and wafers, which it supplies to the ice-cream trade.

OFI, which is part of snacks and food giant Orkla, and describes itself as “the leading bakery ingredients player in the Nordic region”, said the deal would add the UK grocery trade to its sales channels.

Glasgow-based Waverley primarily sells ice cream cones and wafers to the UK grocery sector. It also supplies ingredients, cones and accessories to ice cream parlours and small-scale ice cream manufacturers. The company employs 45 people and is part of Lee’s Foods Group. It had a turnover of £5.9m in 2015 and ebitda of about £0.7m.

The acquisition of Waverley was made through OFI’s wholly owned subsidiary, Idun Industri AS.

Europe-wide

OFI already supplies ice cream ingredients and accessories to the Nordic region and countries including Germany, the Netherlands and UK. Its largest product categories are margarine and butter blends, bread and cake improvers and mixes, marzipan and yeast. It operates through sales and distribution companies in 22 countries.

Pål Eikeland, Orkla SVP and CEO of Orkla Food Ingredients, said: “This acquisition is in line with Orkla’s aim of growing in selected categories and markets where we see a potential for further growth and synergies. The acquisition of Waverley gives Orkla Food Ingredients a leading position in the market for ice cream ingredients and accessories in the UK.”