Italian dairy company Granarolo has bought a majority stake in cheesemaker Venchiaredo for an undisclosed sum.

The deal sees Bologna-headquartered Granarolo increase its stake in the company from 33.5% to 57.5%.

Based in Ramuscello in northeastern Italy, Venchiaredo specialises in the production of stracchino cheese.

Last year, the firm had a turnover of €26.9 million, up 18% on the year before. With 80 employees, the company processes around 36 million litres of milk per year, 30% of which is organic.

Venchiaredo president Alessandro Driussi said: “With the integration into the Granarolo Group, we will continue on the path of growth of Venchiaredo, aiming for an annual production of 9,300 tons of stracchino.”

Granarolo initially acquired a 24% stake in Venchiaredo in 2017 after Emmi sold its remaining stake in the company. The move represented the Swiss firm’s exit from Italy’s fresh cheese market, as it looked to focus its Italian business on categories like desserts and imports of Swiss cheese.

In total, Granarolo has 14 production sites located in Italy, two in France, three in Brazil and one in both New Zealand and the UK.

Last year, Granarolo acquired 100% of UK-based chilled and frozen food distributor Midland Food Group. The deal saw Granarolo purchase both of Midland’s UK manufacturing facilities in Willenhall and Basingstoke, which produce meat products such as chorizos and salamis for the UK’s foodservice industry.

The move made the UK Granarolo’s third largest market after France and Italy in terms of revenue.