RICHMOND, Va. — Markel Ventures, Inc. announced today that its subsidiary, AMF/Tromp B.V., has completed the acquisition of Tromp-Pol Baking Equipment B.V. ("Vanderpol") and Den Boer Baking Systems B.V. ("Den Boer"). Vanderpol and Den Boer design and manufacture waffle equipment, handling equipment, and ovens for bakers worldwide. Both companies are headquartered in the Netherlands.
Following the acquisition, Vanderpol and Den Boer will be combined with the previously acquired Tromp Bakery Equipment to form Tromp Group, a member of the Markel Bakery Group family of companies.
"We are excited to complete the union of Vanderpol and Den Boer with Tromp," stated Ken Newsome, Chief Executive Officer of Markel Bakery Group. "These three companies have worked together for years in a strategic alliance, and now, through this transaction, their customers will be better served by a fully integrated group that can deliver the entire production line.
With AMF (pan bread and bun), Reading (baked snacks), and now Tromp Group (waffles, specialty breads, pizza, cake & pie, and cookie), we cover virtually the entire spectrum of baking equipment. We have offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and China, making our company a truly global enterprise with vast resources to serve the needs of industrial bakers worldwide."
Robert Van Heukelum of Vanderpol and Den Boer will serve as President of Tromp Group. Robert commented, "We are happy to be aligned under the Markel Bakery Group banner. This gives us added stability and resources and the opportunity to partner with trusted, established brands in the baking industry."
About Markel Ventures
Markel Ventures, Inc. (www.markelventures.com) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Markel Corporation (NYSE: MKL). Markel Ventures makes strategic and generally controlling investments in businesses that operate outside of the specialty insurance marketplace. The primary goal of Markel Ventures is to positively contribute to the long-term financial performance of Markel Corporation through the value creating operating activities of its subsidiaries.
About Markel Bakery Group companies
The Markel Bakery Group family of companies (www.markelbakerygroup.com) includes AMF Bakery Systems (www.amfbakery.com), Reading Bakery Systems (www.readingbakery.com), and Tromp Group, (www.trompgroup.nl). The companies serve as market leaders in the manufacturing and design of industrial bakery equipment for the production of bread, bun, baked snacks and other specialty baking products.
About Markel Corporation
Markel Corporation is a diverse financial holding company serving a variety of niche markets. The Company's principal business markets and underwrites specialty insurance products. In each of the Company's businesses, it seeks to provide quality products and excellent customer service so that it can be a market leader. The financial goals of the Company are to earn consistent underwriting and operating profits and superior investment returns to build shareholder value. Visit Markel Corporation on the web at www.markelcorp.com.
This release contains statements concerning or incorporating the company's expectations, assumptions, plans, objectives, future financial or operating performance and other statements that are not historical facts. These statements are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. There are risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from predicted results in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ from those predicted are set forth under "Risk Factors" and "Safe Harbor and Cautionary Statement" in Markel Corporation's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Source: Markel Corporation
