Nexture to Buy Dubai's La Crema in Middle East Ingredients Push
Investindustrial-backed Nexture gains its first regional manufacturing base and a chocolate range through the Dubai ingredients maker.
Tariq Benali Tariq Benali covers business and corporate news across the UAE and MENA for Anecdoted, tracking the deals, leadership moves and regulatory shifts behind the region's companies. tariq@anecdoted.com
Nexture, the food ingredients group backed by Italy's Investindustrial, has signed an agreement to acquire La Crema, a Dubai-based manufacturer of chocolate and value-added food ingredients. The companies announced the deal on Monday. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The purchase gives Nexture its first manufacturing footprint in the Middle East and direct access to a regional ingredients market the company describes as one of the fastest-growing in the world.
La Crema was founded in 2016 by Bilal Khalifeh as a trading business supplying the hotel, restaurant and catering sector. It moved into in-house manufacturing in 2018. That production capacity now sits alongside a distribution network reaching wholesalers, distributors and retailers. About 170 people work for the company across production, operations, sales and marketing.
Nexture said the acquisition delivers an established manufacturing and commercial platform in the UAE from which it can serve customers throughout the Middle East and seek further growth in the region. The deal also adds a wider chocolate offering to the group's existing portfolio of value-added food solutions.
"We believe that combining La Crema's strong regional presence and high-quality portfolio with Nexture's global reach provides a highly complementary and mutually reinforcing partnership, capable of accelerating the business to become the leading supplier in the region," La Crema chief executive Bilal Khalifeh said.
Completion depends on customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. The companies expect the transaction to be finalised by the end of 2026.
The agreement follows Nexture's acquisitions of Frulact and Sipral Padana earlier in 2026. Those deals form part of Investindustrial's broader buy-and-build strategy, under which the industrial holding company adds businesses to existing platforms rather than acquiring standalone assets.
Investindustrial has completed three add-on acquisitions in the Middle East since 2024. Globally it has closed 281 add-ons across more than 30 countries, representing a combined enterprise value of $16.2 billion (€14.1 billion).
Several independently managed portfolio companies affiliated with Investindustrial have expanded their activities in the UAE in recent years, among them the fashion house Ermenegildo Zegna, the food retailer Eataly, the lighting and furniture group Flos B&B Italia Group, and the industrial technology supplier Omnia Technologies.
La Crema's plant and commercial operation are expected to serve as the base for Nexture's regional expansion, giving the group local production capacity in a market where demand for processed ingredients is growing.
