Marel, Iceland, announced plans to acquire a 50% stake in Curio, an Iceland-based provider of primary processing equipment for whitefish processing.

The transaction is in line with Marel’s strategic objective to be a full-line supplier of advanced food processing solutions across the fish, meat and poultry industries. Curio’s product portfolio of heading, filleting and skinning solutions brings Marel closer to becoming a full-line provider to the global fish industry.

Marel and Curio maintain a history of working together to deliver full-line projects around the world, including Innova software from Marel to enable seamless flow across all processing stages. Curio will utilize Marel’s sales and service network to extend its global reach.

Curio’s founder Ellidi Hreinsson will stay with the company.

"We are super excited to join forces with Curio, an innovative provider of equipment for primary processing for the whitefish segment, bringing us closer to becoming a full-line provider in the global fish segment,” says Árni Oddur Thórdarson, chief executive officer of Marel. “In recent years, Marel and Curio have achieved great results collaborating on many full-line projects with some of the most forward thinking fish processors in the industry. With Marel´s full-line approach, overarching Innova software and by being a reliable maintenance partner in the field, we help our customers further automate production in a seamless flow, securing more valuable and safer products to global consumers."

"The acquisition is excellent news for our customers across the world, as the synergies resulting from joining forces will fuel innovation and grow our solution offering,” adds Hreinsson. “I truly look forward to working closer together and expect great things from our joint innovation efforts."