European private equity fund Apheon has announced the acquisition of Alma, a new French group specializing in frozen snacks, formed from the merger of Foo Seng and Varachaux. With the transaction, Apheon will join CEO Daniel Coutinho, who will retain a significant stake in the company and continue to lead its development.
Headquartered in Paris, Alma brings together two complementary companies in the food industry. Foo Seng, founded in 2009 in Orly, is a leading French manufacturer of premium frozen Asian snacks, particularly in the halal segment, one of the most dynamic on the market. Varachaux, established in Wissous since 1968, produces frozen meat and vegetable-based food components for the food industry and professional catering.
Foo Seng's acquisition of Varachaux, completed in April 2026, created a group that today employs around 115 people and aims to become a European benchmark in the premium snacks and frozen ethnic specialties segment.
Daniel Coutinho, who took over Foo Seng in 2023, has led the company's profound transformation in recent years, investing in the organization's professionalization, expanding its product range, and strengthening its sales structure. The integration of Varachaux has also allowed the company to expand its offering, leverage complementary industrial expertise, and access new leading customers.
In recent years, Foo Seng has seen steady revenue growth, benefiting from the strong growth of the frozen snacks market and, in particular, the demand for halal products. Thanks to the combination with Varachaux, Alma now has a more diversified product portfolio and increased production capacity.
Apheon's entry marks the beginning of a new phase of development. The fund will support the group's organic growth, assist Varachaux's repositioning towards higher value-added products, and foster a strategy of targeted acquisitions in a still highly fragmented European market.
Apheon is making its experience in industrial consolidation available to management, with the aim of accelerating the group's international expansion and creating a European champion in the so-called "world foods" sector.
According to Coutinho, the partnership will allow the company to continue its growth while maintaining the quality, authenticity of its recipes, and production expertise that have contributed to Foo Seng's success.
Wolfgang de Limburg, Managing Partner of Apheon, also highlighted Alma's potential, defining it as a leading operator in a high-growth niche, supported by solid industrial expertise and significant consolidation opportunities.
Apheon manages approximately €4,5 billion in assets on behalf of institutional investors and international families. Since its founding in 2005, it has raised over €5 billion, invested in approximately 45 European companies, and completed approximately 250 add-on acquisitions, for a total value exceeding €8 billion. The fund's portfolio currently includes approximately 25 companies, with aggregate revenues of €3,5 billion and over 20.000 employees.
