Carr’s Group sells engineering division for £75 million

Carr’s Group has completed the sale of its engineering division for £75 million.

The Carlisle-headquartered firm was founded in 1831 and was one of the largest baking businesses in Britain, and began milling flour in 1836.

It acquired engineering business Bendalls in 1996 and moved into agriculture in 1997 when it bought Animal Feed Supplement in the USA. It continued to expand and sold the flour mills side of the business in 2016 for £36m, to allow it to focus on engineering and agriculture.

The engineering division designs, manufactures and services bespoke equipment, vessels, precision components and remote handling systems alongside providing specialist engineering services in the nuclear, defence, oil & gas, motorsport, pharmaceutical and renewable industries.

The sale of its engineering division to Cadre Holdings marked a critical milestone in Carr’s transition to a pure-play agriculture business, it said.

It added its strategy was now focused on on margin improvement, core growth, and geographic expansion.

It added: “Operating under the revised and streamlined structure will enhance the group’s financial and operational efficiencies and improve its long-term quality of earnings.

“With new leadership and sector expertise now in place, the group is strongly positioned to implement its focused agriculture strategy’ and capitalise on market leading positions.

“The transformation of the agriculture business, under Josh Hoopes and his leadership team, continues to progress well and at an accelerated pace.”

A separate sale process relating to Chirton Engineering, part of the wider engineering division but is not being sold to Cadre, remains ongoing and is progressing positively, it added.

Subject to shareholder approval, the board intends to return up to £70m via the Capital Return described in the Disposal Announcement, with any remaining proceeds expected to be used for general corporate purposes and to fund strategic growth within agriculture.

David White, CEO of Carr’s, said: “I am delighted to announce the successful completion of the sale process, which marks a significant milestone in delivering value for our shareholders. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our colleagues in the engineering division for their dedication and hard work over the years and wish them every future success under Cadre’s ownership.

“We have made significant progress implementing our new Agriculture Strategy for the repositioned business, focused on driving profitable growth and expanding into new markets.

“With our streamlined operations, strengthened leadership team, and clear strategic direction, I am confident about the group’s ability to deliver sustainable, profitable growth.”

The company intends to announce its results for the six months ended February 28 2025 on May 7.