Azelis, a leading global innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry, announces that it has acquired 100% of the shares of Smoky Light B.V. (‘Smoky Light’), a well-established distributor in the Benelux smoke ingredients market.

The acquisition reinforces Azelis’ position in the Benelux market and expands its footprint in the smoke ingredient market in EMEA. Smoky Light’s portfolio of products strategically complements the group’s lateral value chain for the food & nutrition market, thereby further expanding its expertise and product offering to customers.

Ahrend Buckers, Managing Director of Smoky Light, comments: “Joining Azelis will support our further growth in the Benelux in the short-term. In the long run, we are looking forward to entering a wider smoke ingredients industry that is now possible for us thanks to Azelis’ strong infrastructure in that market. We are very excited and proud to be part of a leading global innovative distributor and to contribute to its success.”

Evy Hellinckx, Managing Director Azelis Benelux, adds: “Integrating Smoky Light into Azelis is a great opportunity to reinforce Azelis’ footprint in the Netherlands and Belgium, but also to further strengthen Azelis' expertise and activities in smoke ingredients. This transaction is not only a great contribution to our range of aroma formulations, but it also builds on our growth strategy and reinforces our position as leading innovation service provider in specialty ingredients. It will also strengthen our relationships with our strong and established partners with whom we both work.”

Established in 1995 and located in Reeuwijk, the Netherlands, Smoky Light is specialized in the distribution of smoke, grill, browning agents and cooking flavors and additives for the food & nutrition industry. The company is managed by Ahrend Buckers, who will continue to lead the business and support the integration into Azelis. Smoky Light employs a team of dedicated local technical sales experts and runs its own formulation laboratory to serve its strong network of over 200 customers in the Benelux.