Nomad Foods Ltd., UK, entered into an agreement to acquire Aunt Bessie’s Ltd. from William Jackson & Son Ltd., UK.

Aunt Bessie’s is a UK-based frozen food manufacturer of products ranging from frozen Yorkshire pudding to frozen potatoes. The acquisition, which includes a production facility in Hull, England, will expand Nomad Foods’ portfolio into the frozen meals category.

The acquisition of Aunt Bessie’s is also expected to further develop Nomad Foods’ portfolio in the United Kingdom. The combination of Aunt Bessie’s, Birds Eye and the recently acquired Goodfella’s is expected to result in a highly complementary portfolio with significantly enhanced scale, greater diversification and more resources to accelerate category growth.

“We are excited to welcome Aunt Bessie’s to Nomad Foods,” says Stefan Descheemaeker, chief executive officer of Nomad Foods. “Aunt Bessie’s iconic brand, positive values and strong product credentials align well with our existing portfolio. As our second accretive acquisition in 2018, Aunt Bessie’s represents another step toward our goal of transforming the frozen food category and building a portfolio of best-in-class food brands. Aunt Bessie’s significantly expands our presence within potatoes, one of the largest categories in frozen food, while adding another dimension to our growing portfolio in the United Kingdom.”

“The acquisition of Aunt Bessie’s illustrates the power of our value creation model, which is fueled by organic revenue growth, strong free cash flow and disciplined M&A,” adds Noam Gottesman, Nomad Foods’ co-chairman and founder. “Similar to Goodfella’s Pizza, which we acquired earlier this year, Aunt Bessie’s is expected to be immediately accretive to earnings while providing complementary category exposure, synergy opportunities and new avenues for growth. We look forward to welcoming the Aunt Bessie’s team to our organization and working together to build on their success.”