NINOVE, BELGIUM — Global milling and bakery company La Lorraine Bakery Group (LLBG) has formed a US joint venture with Bakery de France, a Rockville, Md.-based manufacturer of frozen, par-baked artisan bread products for the North American retail and foodservice markets.

Financial terms of the transaction weren’t disclosed. Ninove, Belgium-based LLBG said it will hold a 50% ownership stake in Bakery de France. Alexander Salameh, previously chief operating officer of Bakery de France, has been named chief executive officer of the joint venture.

LLBG noted that the joint venture with Bakery de France will boost its presence in North America – with more than 300 million consumers – and further its overall growth strategy.

“We are very happy and proud that we can start a new growth story on a new continent together with the Salameh family,” said Guido Vanherpe, group CEO of LLBG. “After more than 80 years of growth in more than 35 countries on the European continent, Turkey and Middle East, we have now a great opportunity to scale our expertise and further expand our international footprint to the North American market.”

LLBG described Bakery de France, founded nearly 40 years ago, as a market leader in artisanal bake-off bread. Products made by Bakery de France include par-baked sandwich rolls, loaves, dinner rolls and baguettes. The company is known for using levain, a live liquid starter, in the long-fermentation process to make European-style bread, which is flash frozen. Bakery de France also produces a line of free-form bread – including ancient grain, harvest grain and country batards plus a rustic Italian variety – that the company said is free from chunking, moulding and processing.

Bakery de France products are distributed by Dot Foods, multiple broadline distributors and other partners in North America. The company also has cold storage facilities across the United States.

“For nearly 40 years, Bakery de France has grown as an innovative, dynamic and dependable partner for our customers,” Salameh said. “Today, we are proud to continue scaling by joining forces with LLBG, a strong partner who shares our core values of focusing on quality and customer service in a family-owned environment. This partnership further reinforces our commitment to our customers and our team members as we continue our exciting journey together.”

A family-owned company, La Lorraine Bakery Group has more than 5,000 employees and totaled sales of €1.36 billion in 2023. It operates in over 35 countries and makes bakery products in 9 countries, with business units spanning frozen and fresh bakery, milling and bakery stores. Production operations include the Paniflower mill in Belgium, which the company called one of the largest flour producers in the Benelux region, and 17 baking plants in Belgium, Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Hungary, Turkey and United Arab Emirates.