SCHIPHOL, NETHERLANDS — Cargill’s acquisition of Leman Decoration Group includes the artisanal, small industrial and home-baking segments and foodservice, broadening Cargill’s contributions to decorations space. It will also enable Cargill’s cocoa and chocolate business to offer customers complementary decoration technology, enhanced production capabilities and a wide-ranging product portfolio to increase intimacy and speeds to market.

“By adding Leman Decoration Group to the Cargill family, we’re able to support our gourmet and industrial customers at every step of their journey – from concept to finished product,” said Inge Demeyere, managing director, Cargill Chocolate Europe. “Our dedicated Gourmet business will be a true one-stop shop for all their chocolate needs, inclusions, decorations, couverture chocolate and now an extensive range of special decorations, all backed by a unique platform for sound customer service, including extensive R&D and printing capabilities and the combined expertise and resources of two world-class organizations.”

Leman Decoration Group’s manufacturing sites in Belgium, Mauritius and Thailand will be included in the acquisition transaction, along with all of their facilities and their nearly 450 employees, who will report to Cargill’s Global Gourmet and Distribution organization.

Leman Decoration Group is a family-owned business with customers across 55 countries. It is known for its extensive product range, with a portfolio that includes cake decorations, chocolate printings, sugar-based decorations and wafers.

“Cargill’s deep chocolate production expertise and established global cocoa and chocolate supply compliments our long-standing commitment to our gourmet customers,” said Didier Leman, owner of Leman Decoration Group. “By joining with Cargill, we can build on our nearly six-decade legacy in the decoration space and leverage the collective strengths of our complementary operations to better serve the full-spectrum of our clients’ needs today and for years to come.”

Collaborations between both companies include their Mouscron, Belgium-based innovation centers. Cargill’s House of Chocolate complex with chocolate experience facility, pilot plant and sensory lab is expected to open in early 2022. With Leman Decoration Group’s R&D hub located nearby, the center will provide customer demonstrations, partnerships and innovations.

Cargill’s acquisition of Lemon Decoration Group is the latest move in a plan to extend its presence and product line in the gourmet space. It follows Cargill’s acquisition of Smet, a Belgium-based chocolate and sweets decorations supplier, in 2019, as well as the expansion of its Kalmthout, Belgium gourmet production facility in 2021. In March of this year, Cargill added signature origins to its Veliche line of couverture chocolates.