Marel

Marel hf. is an Icelandic food processing equipment manufacturer founded in 1983 in Reykjavík, originating from a University of Iceland research project developing motion-compensated weighing systems for fish processing. From these origins the company grew through a series of acquisitions into the world’s largest supplier of integrated food processing equipment for poultry, meat, and fish. A pivotal moment in that growth was the 2008 acquisition of Stork Food Systems — the food machinery division of the Dutch industrial conglomerate Stork N.V. — for €415 million, which doubled Marel’s turnover and added Stork’s 60-year legacy in poultry and meat processing equipment. In January 2025, JBT Corporation (USA) completed the acquisition of Marel for $4.4 billion; the combined company now trades as JBT Marel Corporation on the NYSE under the ticker JBTM.

Company profile

Founding and early history (1977–1992)

Marel’s origins lie in a 1977 research project at the University of Iceland aimed at developing motion-compensating electronic scales for weighing fish on board fishing vessels — a practical problem in Iceland’s central industry. The project was formalised as a company on 17 March 1983 by five founders: Rögnvaldur Ólafsson, Þórður Vigfússon, Jón Þór Ólafsson, Pétur Jónsson, and Tómas Ríkarðsson. The first commercial product, the M1000 scale, became the company’s flagship and continues to be sold today.

The scale business expanded into portioning systems, and Marel progressively built expertise in precision weighing and control systems for fish processing lines. By 1992, when the company listed on the Iceland Stock Exchange (Nasdaq Iceland), it employed 45 people and generated approximately €6 million in annual revenue. The IPO provided capital for international expansion beyond Iceland’s small domestic market.

Acquisition-led growth (1997–2022)

Marel’s transformation from a specialist fish equipment supplier into a global protein processing leader was driven by a sequence of targeted acquisitions across three decades:

This acquisition sequence systematically broadened Marel’s coverage from fish into poultry, meat, pet food, and plant-based processing, and from hardware into software and services. The 2006 Scanvaegt acquisition brought grading and batching expertise; the 2015 MPS acquisition added meat intra-logistics; Wenger (2022) opened the pet food processing market.

The Stork Food Systems acquisition (2008)

The acquisition of Stork Food Systems was the most consequential transaction in Marel’s history. Stork Food Systems — the food machinery division of Stork N.V. — had a heritage stretching back to the 1940s in poultry processing equipment, including the iconic P40 poultry evisceration system that had been a global standard for more than fifty years. In 2006 Stork Food Systems had itself acquired Townsend Engineering (USA), a manufacturer of sausage and meat processing equipment, further broadening its portfolio.

Timeline of the acquisition:

Strategic rationale: The two companies had cooperated commercially for nine years prior to the acquisition. The combination doubled Marel’s annual turnover to approximately €660 million and added more than 1,875 Stork Food Systems employees (plus the Townsend workforce), bringing total headcount above 4,000. Marel’s fish processing expertise and Stork’s poultry and meat legacy were described as complementary. The combined entity was positioned as the forerunner in development of food processing equipment across all protein categories.

Financing: The acquisition was partly financed through Landsbanki Íslands, Iceland’s second-largest bank. Landsbanki collapsed in October 2008 during the global financial crisis — just months after the Stork acquisition closed — creating a period of financial strain for Marel that was resolved through a restructured balance sheet in the following years.

Post-acquisition: The Marel Stork Poultry Processing brand was retained as a product identity. The Oss-based operations (former Stork Townsend, previously Townsend Engineering, and before that Protecon under Unilever) continued as a manufacturing centre. In 2014, Marel Stork Poultry Processing celebrated its 70-year anniversary, counting from the founding of the original poultry processing equipment operations. Theo Bruinsma, who had been President of Stork Townsend, joined the Marel board of directors and served as Director of Marel Poultry following the integration, before becoming chairman of GMV in 2014.

Financial development

Stock exchange listings

• 1992: Listed on the Iceland Stock Exchange (Nasdaq Iceland)
• 7 June 2019: Dual-listed on Euronext Amsterdam — 133 million new shares at €3.70 each, raising €370 million; market capitalisation at listing €2.82 billion. Marel became the second-largest company by market capitalisation on Nasdaq Iceland.
• January 2025: Delisted from both Euronext Amsterdam and Nasdaq Iceland following JBT takeover; now trades as JBT Marel on NYSE and Nasdaq Iceland under ticker JBTM.

Products and technologies

Marel’s product portfolio spans the full processing chain from slaughter or primary processing through portioning, weighing, grading, packaging, and traceability, for poultry, meat, fish, pet food, and plant-based protein:

• M1000 and M-Weigher: Motion-compensated process weighing (original product line)
• Scanvaegt Scangrader 7100: High-performance dynamic grading for poultry
• Portioning systems: Precision weight portioning for retail and foodservice specification
• TREIF cutting solutions: Portioning, dicing, slicing, bread cutting (post-2020)
• MAJA skinning and ice systems: Meat and fish processing (post-2018)
• Wenger extrusion and conditioning: Pet food processing (post-2022)
• Cedar Creek traceability software: Production control, data capture, compliance documentation
• Intra-logistics (MPS): Automated internal transport and buffer systems for meat processing plants

JBT Corporation acquisition (2024–2025)

JBT Corporation (John Bean Technologies Corporation, headquartered in Chicago) is a US-listed food processing and airport equipment manufacturer. On 5 April 2024, JBT announced a definitive agreement to acquire Marel hf. through a voluntary takeover offer. The acquisition was structured as a cash-and-stock offer with a total consideration of $4.4 billion.

Timeline:

Strategic rationale: The combined JBT Marel group is positioned as a comprehensive food processing equipment and services company, with expected revenue synergies of over $75 million within three years from cross-selling, shared innovation investment, and expanded global customer service capabilities.

The Marel brand continues within the JBT Marel structure; the website and product lines remain accessible at jbtmarel.com.

Market position

Prior to the JBT acquisition, Marel described itself as the world’s largest producer of protein processing-related equipment (animal and vegetable). Specific segment positions included:

• Poultry: Most comprehensive product range and largest installed base worldwide
• Fish: Leading global supplier of advanced standalone and integrated processing systems
• Meat: Full-line supplier following the sequence of acquisitions completed 2008–2022
• Pet food: Significant global position following the 2022 Wenger acquisition

Marel served customers in more than 140 countries, with operations across 30+ countries and approximately half of its employees based in regionally distributed service and sales functions. The Netherlands — inherited from the Stork acquisition — housed approximately one-third of total employees at peak.