Skip to content
Search
AI Powered
Latest Stories

Valeo Foods acquires Canadian maple syrup business Appalaches Nature

Valeo Foods acquires Canadian maple syrup business Appalaches Nature
Appalaches Nature facility in Thetford Mines, Québec

Valeo Foods Group, one of Europe’s leading producers of sweets, treats and snacks, has completed the acquisition of Appalaches Nature, a Canadian maple syrup business.

Started in 2018, Appalaches Nature, which operates from a state-of-the-art 100,000 sq. ft. carbon neutral facility in Thetford Mines, Québec, is a major supplier of maple syrup to European markets and a growing supplier to the Canadian and US markets.


The transaction marks Valeo Foods’ second acquisition in North America and within the maple syrup market, consolidating its position as a leader in the natural sweeteners category globally.

Valeo Foods is already a global leader in maple syrup though its Canada based Les Industries Bernard & Fils business, one of the world’s leading maple syrup processors, which has grown by 30 per cent since becoming part of Valeo Foods in 2022. It is also a leader in the honey segment through its world leading Rowse Honey brand which produces and distributes over 30,000 tonnes of honey internationally each year.

Valeo Foods said it plans to integrate Appalaches Nature alongside Bernard where synergies, including highly complementary manufacturing capabilities, will support the accelerated growth of the combined business.

“This will enable it to significantly increase production capacity to meet growing customer demand and to facilitate further expansion across Europe and internationally,” the company said in a statement.

The day-to-day operations of Appalaches Nature will continue to be led by the existing management team, in close collaboration with the management of Bernard.

Earlier this year, Valeo Foods has acquired leading Italian bakery company Dal Colle.

More for you

Surge recorded in whole food sales

iStock image

Surge recorded in whole food sales

Brits are increasingly leaning towards cooking from scratch and are ditching ultra processed food, thus embracing a much simpler approach to their diet, a recent report has stated.
According to a recent report from John Lewis Partnership released on Friday (17), supermarket Waitrose has reported that it’s back to basics for many in 2025 due to a growing awareness around ultra processed foods, with many turning away from low-fat, highly processed products in favour of less-processed, whole food ingredients.
Whole milk and full-fat Greek yogurt sales are up 11 per cent and 21 per cent compared to skimmed milk and Greek style yoghurt a year ago.
Block butter sales are up by +20 per cent as compared to dairy spreads while brown rice is seeing +7 per cent more sales as compared to white rice.
The report adds that sourdough bread sales are up by +20 per cent as compared to white bread while full fat Greek yoghurt recorded +21 per cent more sales than Greek style yoghurt.
Over the past 30 days, searches on Waitrose website whole food searches soared with ‘full fat milk’ and ‘full fat yoghurt’ skyrocketing 417 per cent and 233 per cent.
The shfit reflects the wider growing awareness of effects of ultra-processed foods, thanks in no small part to Dr Chris van Tulleken’s bestselling book Ultra-Processed People and its continued momentum in 2024 and into 2025.
His eye-opening, rigorously researched account of ultra-processed foods and their effect on our health turned many people towards cooking from scratch, with unprocessed or minimally processed ingredients.

Maddy Wilson, Director of Waitrose Own Brand comments, “There’s been a lot of bad press around so-called ‘healthy’ products which aren’t nutritious and don’t taste great, however the growing awareness of ultra processed food in our diets has seen many customers seeking the basics and embracing a much simpler approach to their diet.”

Waitrose Food & Drink report released last year highlighted that 54 per cent of those surveyed proactively avoid processed foods.

Keep ReadingShow less
Hinckley c-store ordered to close down

Image from Leicestershire County Council

Hinckley c-store ordered to close down

A convenience store in Hinckley, which sold illegal cigarettes to undercover Trading Standards officers on eight occasions and had more than 1,800 packets of illegal tobacco seized during four enforcement visits, has been closed down for three months.

As informed by Leicestershire County Council, Easy Shop in Regent Street has been ordered to remain closed until April 15 by Leicester Magistrates Court, following a joint operation by Leicestershire County Council’s Trading Standards service and Leicestershire Police. The orders were issues last week.

Keep ReadingShow less
Peterborough shop “closed” to tackle organised crime

Image from Cambridgeshire Constabulary

Peterborough shop “closed” to tackle organised crime

A city centre convenience store in Cambridgeshire has been closed down after police found "illicit" items including Viagra tablets, illegal tobacco and more than £14,000 in cash from the premises.

About 683,400 cigarettes, 37.45kg of hand rolling tobacco, and 35 cigars were seized by the police from International Food Centre in Lincoln Road in Peterborough late last year. The closure order was served on the shop and flat above on Dec 31following an application to Huntingdon Magistrates' Court.

Keep ReadingShow less
Champagne being poured into champagne glasses
Photo: iStock

Champagne shipments hit by gloomy consumer mood in 2024, producers say

French champagne shipments fell by nearly 10 per cent last year as economic and political uncertainties hit consumers' appetite for the sparkling wine in key markets such as France and the US, the producers association said.

Producers had called in July for a cut in the number of grapes harvested this year after sales fell more than 15 per cent in the first half of 2024. Full year shipments were down 9.2 per cent from 2023 at 271.4 million bottles, the Comite Champagne (Champagne Committee) said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Booker Group donates over 20 million meals to those in need
Photo by DANIEL LEAL/AFP via Getty Images

Booker Group donates over 20 million meals to those in need

UK’s leading food and drink wholesaler Booker has today (20) announced it has donated the equivalent of over 20 million meals to charities and local communities as part of its ongoing partnership with FareShare and Olio.

Donations are delivered or collected direct from Booker’s 190 branches, 11 distribution depots and Best Food Logistics business. In 2024 alone, Booker donated over seven million meals to FareShare charities in local communities.

Keep ReadingShow less