The company's ownership is now wholly in private hands under the guidance of chief executive Alan Owens and finance director Andy Behagg, both from the original MBO team.

Potentially if all Greenvale AP's growers decide to buy shares, the company could be up to 25 per cent grower owned. Staff of the company will be given the opportunity to purchase shares and have already shown a commitment to investing in 30 per cent of the company's equity. The balance, some 45 per cent, is in the hands of the senior management team which also includes two retired members of the previous MBO team.

'In terms of day-to-day business, we will be doing just the same and getting on with running our business,' Owens told the Journal. 'Our customers have looked at the fact that we are privately owned in a very positive way and they know that the team is progressive from our acquisitions over the past six years. We will continue to go forward not only looking at acquisitions, but also joint ventures as we still perceive that the fresh produce industry will continue to rationalise and get bigger and we see ourselves as very much a part of that. '

Topics