Italy’s largest caviar producer, Agroittica Lombarda Group, has taken over the also Italian salmon smokehouse Fjord, for 3.4 million euros, reports Fisch Magazin.
Agroittica, based in Calvisano (Brescia/Lombardy) in northern Italy, produces caviar and smoked fish (salmon, trout and sturgeon), sold under the brand names Calvisius and Ars Italica Calvisius. The company, owned by the Pasini family, had an annual turnover of 24 million euro in 2016.
Processor Fjord became insolvent in 2016. In recent years, the company has experienced a decline in sales of around 30 million euros (2014) over 23 million euros (2015) to 13.6 million euros (2016) and losses of 3.3 million euros.
World leader in sturgeon breeding
Agroittica was borne out of a joint venture of three nationally and internationally renowned companies in the Italian aquaculture business, Agroittica Lombarda, the Azienda Agricola Mandelli and Azienda Agricola VIP.
Agroittica started its sturgeon farm in 1977. The production of caviar and smoked fish was added in the following years. The fish farms, with a surface of more than 10 hectares, are located in the protected Ticino Wildlife, on border of Italian provinces Lombardy and Piedmont.
Italian Caviar, a company part of the Agroittica Lombarda Group, is world leader in sturgeon breeding and farmed caviar production. The company has its own sturgeon reproduction, that supplies sturgeon hatchery companies worldwide.
