Mérieux NutriSciences, Chicago, acquired majority ownership of Swift Micro Laboratories, expanding the geographic coverage of Silliker, its food safety and quality business unit.

Under the new brand name Swift Silliker, the company will grow its service portfolio to match the global offerings of Silliker. The partnership gives Swift immediate and continuous access to the state-of-the-art systems and services of Mérieux NutriSciences. Swift Micro clients include food processors, retailers, foodservice and farmers.

“This joint venture investment is in line with our strategic goal to further expand our international presence and answer the many requests from customers to develop a presence in South Africa and the fast developing African market. During initial discussions with the Swift management team, we found commonality in a strategic vision and in our values of excellence, integrity, innovation and accountability dedicated to customer satisfaction,” says Philippe Sans, president and CEO of Mérieux NutriSciences.

“To date, we have declined partnership approaches from global corporations, but the venture with Mérieux NutriSciences, and in particular Silliker, its food safety and quality division, is a natural fit. We not only share similar food and product safety approaches, but we also share global clients that operate in Southern Africa. As part of Silliker, Swift will benefit from the strength of the group, and accelerate our development with the introduction of new services for faster expansion in Africa,” says Valmé Stewart, managing director of Swift Silliker.