Glanbia, an international cheese and nutritional ingredients group, has moved in on the growing sports nutrition market with the acquisition of Optimum Nutrition, a manufacturer of nutritional supplements for the sports sector.

Glanbia, an international cheese and nutritional ingredients group, has moved in on the growing sports nutrition market with the acquisition of Optimum Nutrition, a manufacturer of nutritional supplements for the sports sector.

The $315 million (£250 million) international deal, which includes some of the strongest top end, whey-based nutrition brands in the US, will be debt-free and funded by Glanbia’s existing cash resources.

In 2007, Optimum made $32 million on a turnover of $185 million and in December the Illinois-based business had $51 million of gross assets.

Kevin Toland, CEO and president of Glambia USA, said: “Optimum is a strong business with an excellent track record and reputation in the sports nutrition market, particularly in the US. The company has strong brands and a broad distribution network in an attractive market segment.”

The international dairy food company based in Ireland has an ongoing growth strategy to expand operations in Ireland, China, Nigeria and the USA.

John Moloney, Glanbia managing director, said: “This is an exciting acquisition for Glanbia as it gives us a leading position of scale in a fast-growing segment of the nutrition market. It is a close strategic fit with our core areas of expertise in whey and sports nutrition and brings us up the value chain into consumer markets.”

The global nutritional market is estimated to be worth €228 billion per annum. Within this, the sports and fitness nutrition market is worth $30bn with growth forecast at a rate of 7 per cent to 8 per cent per annum.