Nexture, the food ingredients group backed by Investindustrial, has agreed to acquire Dubai-based chocolate and ingredients manufacturer La Crema — its first manufacturing footprint in the Middle East and the latest in a string of add-on deals building out Investindustrial’s regional buy-and-build strategy.

A manufacturing foothold in Dubai

La Crema was founded by Bilal Khalife in 2016 as a trading business serving the HoReCa segment, before expanding into in-house manufacturing in 2018. It now combines production with a distribution network spanning wholesalers, distributors and retailers, supplying chocolate and value-added ingredients into ice cream, bakery and fine pastry applications. The company’s Dubai manufacturing facility employs approximately 170 people across production, operations, and sales & marketing.

For Nexture — formed following Investindustrial’s acquisition of CSM Ingredients in 2021 — the deal gives it direct access to what the group calls one of the world’s fastest-growing ingredients markets, alongside an established local platform from which to serve customers across the wider Middle East.

Chocolate joins the portfolio

Valerie-Diele Braun, chief executive officer of Nexture, framed the deal as both geographic and category expansion: “This acquisition marks an important step in Nexture’s global growth strategy, establishing our first manufacturing footprint in the Middle East and giving us direct access to one of the world’s fastest-growing ingredients markets. La Crema is a natural fit for our portfolio, adding a rich and diversified chocolate offering to our value-added solutions and unlocking meaningful synergies across the Group.”

Bilal Khalifeh, Chief Executive Officer of La Crema, pointed to the region’s fundamentals as the draw for the partnership: “The UAE and the broader Gulf region represent a strategic pillar of Nexture’s expansion plans. The region’s strong macro-economic fundamentals, rapid population growth and increasing demand for high-quality, specialised food ingredients creates a highly compelling environment to grow.”

Part of a Wider Middle East Build-Out

The La Crema deal is the third add-on acquisition Investindustrial has completed in the Middle East since 2024, and sits within a broader total of 281 add-on acquisitions across more than 30 countries, with a combined enterprise value of €14.1 billion. It follows two earlier 2026 acquisitions by Nexture — Frulact and Sipral Padana — continuing the group’s pattern of what Investindustrial describes as transforming local champions into global leaders.

Investindustrial’s Middle East activity extends beyond ingredients: portfolio companies including Ermenegildo Zegna, Eataly, Flos B&B Italia Group and Omnia Technologies have all expanded into the UAE in recent years, backed by what the firm frames as a long-term regional commitment — including through the Investindustrial Foundation’s partnership with the Transition Investment Lab at NYU Abu Dhabi.

Emanuela Cisini, Partner and Head of the Middle East and Asia at Investindustrial, said: “Through La Crema, Nexture will gain an established manufacturing platform in the UAE, strong local relationships and direct access to a fast-growing market. We believe there is significant opportunity to combine local entrepreneurial expertise with Nexture’s global capabilities to accelerate innovation, strengthen customer partnerships and support the company’s next phase of growth.”

What It Means

The deal is a clear signal of where Investindustrial sees growth in geographic access to markets growing faster than its established European base. For Nexture, chocolate is a relatively new addition to a portfolio built through CSM Ingredients, and pairing it with a Middle East manufacturing base suggests the group is using M&A to solve two strategic gaps — category breadth and regional presence — in a single move.

For La Crema, the calculus is different: a nine-year-old business gains the balance sheet and international network of a global group just as Gulf demand for specialised, high-quality ingredients is accelerating.

Andrea C. Bonomi, chairman of the Investindustrial industrial advisory board, described the transaction as a milestone in Nexture’s development — but it also reads as a template Investindustrial is likely to repeat as it continues converting regional players into platforms for further Middle East expansion.

The transaction remains subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals, with completion expected by the end of 2026.