Cibapac, the multi-faceted food packaging manufacturer, has announced the acquisition of Intercas, a Gauteng-based distributor of casings for processed meat. Prize aspect of the deal is that Intercas is the exclusive local agent for Kalle sausage casings, a global market leader in the sector.

The deal typifies Cibapac's strategy of securing innovative growth avenues following its creation last year – previously the SA subsidiary of LINPAC Packaging, it became a wholly-owned SA entity via a private equity deal and MBO in mid 2009.

'It's a great complementary fit for both parties,' comments Cibapac MD, Ivan Ortlepp. 'Intercas has well-established credentials in the meat sector and we're buying a viable going concern that has great potential for further growth. We're already a big player in this sector as a leading manufacturer of seamless casings for polonies – and we can now offer our customers a vastly extended range of casing products. Intercas's principals, notably Kalle, will enjoy the benefits of our national sales and distribution infrastructure.'

Cibapac MD, Ivan Ortlepp, with Walter Niederstätter, CEO and president of Kalle, and Johan Deyzel, founder of Intercas, snapped at the recent IFFA meat expo in Frankfurt.

Intercas was founded by Johan Deyzel who will stay with the company and head up Cibapac's new Specialist Films Division. He comments: 'Kalle sets the bar in the casings world. It invests substantially in R&D and this will have a positive spin-off for Cibapac – apart from the scope to expand existing markets and open new ones, we will benefit from sharing Kalle's depth of technical expertise in improving our own production and printing processes.'

Headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany, Kalle is one of the top five global producers of artificial casings for sausages with very strong market positions in the viscose, textile and plastic product areas. The company has annual sales of €220 million and operates from 16 production sites in 10 countries. Kalle is widely regarded as one of the most innovative polymer and 'value-adding' casings suppliers in the world with over 12 000 different products for a broad spectrum of applications, supplied to approximately 1 100 customers in over 80 countries.

According to Kalle, the global sausage casings’ market size (natural and artificial) was estimated to be around €3.5bn in 2008. The market is expected to grow from 2008-2012 by 3,4% per annum. Broadly, the market for casings is divided into natural and artificial casings, with the latter slightly bigger with about 51% of the total market value. As world demand for meat products grows, this share is expected to increase to 54% by 2012.

There have also been important advances in the field of sausage casings. Synthetic casings have been improved by increasing their permeability to gas and water vapour, and there has been considerable innovation in 'value-added' products. For instance, Kalle has developed NaloPro casings which combine several meat production steps in a one-step process ie the application of smoke, colour or spices from the casing directly to the surface of the meat. This eliminates several production steps, allowing meat producers to reduce their costs.

Comments Dr Walter Niederstätter, president and CEO of Kalle: 'Kalle is the market leader in its segments and has strong technical skills based on its excellent research and development capability. We operate with high levels of productivity and offer a comprehensive portfolio of high quality products to our global customer base. We look forward to working with Cibapac to further realise the potential of our business in South Africa.'