Humble Group is investing further in confectionery, with the Swedish FMCG business pointing to “strong growth in demand”.
The listed group, which markets products from confectionery and sports nutrition to home and personal care, is leasing a new factory in its domestic market.
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Humble, which is spending SKr135m ($14.4m) on the site in the southern Swedish town of Skövde, expects to double the production of soft confectionery products from its Grahns Konfektyr subsidiary.
Grahns Konfektyr, which has another facility in the same town, makes hard- and soft-boiled confectionery, jelly products and chocolate lines.
The company projects the business will be able to make around 11,000 tons of jelly products a year.
“The new factory will enable Grahns to double its capacity as well as being able to streamline production flows when producing multiple product categories – hard- or soft-boiled, jellies or sugar-free,” Humble CEO Simon Petrén told Just Food.
The work in the factory is scheduled to be completed next summer.
“Grahns will be able to continue to deliver growing volumes to Pändy – one of our fast-growing sugar-free / sugar-reduced brands – while at the same time being able to meet external customer demand better,” Petrén added.
Humble Group has three other confectionery subsidiaries: Franssons Konfektyr, Grenna Konfektyr and La Praline Scandinavia. Each have a single production site.
The company has a range of its own confectionery brands that includes Pandy, Wellibites, Pitstop and Bravokola. It is also a manufacturer for other brands, although Petrén declined to disclose any of its customers. “External production represents approximately 30% of total production at the confectionery units,” he said.
Petrén said Humble does not publish sales figures for its confectionery subsidiaries but added: “Looking at our confectionery factory units, sugar-free brands alone are growing at rate of 50%-plus per year.”
In 2024, Humble generated group net sales of SKr7.71bn, up 9% year on year.
The company’s “future snacking” arm, which includes confectionery, grew its net sales by 4% to SKr975m. The division generated an adjusted EBITDA of SKr92m. Group-wide adjusted EBITDA was SKr578m.
At full capacity, the new site in Skövde is projected to lead to SKr300m in increased sales and SKr60m in improved EBITDA, Humble said.
The principal markets for Humble’s confectionery business are Sweden, Norway and Denmark. Petrén said the company was taking some of its brands into other European markets, including Germany, as well as into the US. It launched Pändy in the US last year.
Last month, Nordic food major Orkla launched its Swedish confectionery brand Bubs in the US, with listings at retailers including Walmart, Kroger and Target.
Orkla, which acquired Bubs two years ago, said demand for the brand has grown outside Sweden thanks to “viral” content on TikTok and demand in markets including the US.
