Cris-Tim Family Holding accelerates growth in ready meals segment with agreement to acquire Via Trend and Snack 4U

• The acquisition will strengthen Cris-Tim’s leadership in ready meals and expand its production capabilities into sandwiches through Snack 4U, Romania’s largest sandwich producer.
• The transaction includes three production facilities and 380 employees, with a newly built, modern 8,000-square-meter facility creating opportunities to optimize production and revise the previously planned RON 100 million investment in a new ready-meals factory.
• The acquired businesses generated indicative adjusted average annual turnover of approximately RON 143 million, EBITDA of RON 21 million and net profit of RON 9 million over 2023–2025, based on unaudited management estimates intended to approximate an IFRS basis.
• Competition and investment-screening clearances have been obtained, with completion expected by the end of November 2026.

Bucharest, 2 October 2026 – Cris-Tim Family Holding S.A. (BVB: CFH), market leader in cold cuts and ready meals in Romania, has signed an agreement to acquire Via Trend Ready Meals S.R.L. and its wholly owned subsidiary, Snack 4U Concept S.R.L. The transaction brings together two of Romania’s leading ready-meals businesses and adds the country’s largest sandwich producer to Cris-Tim’s operations, advancing the growth strategy presented to investors at its IPO.

“Signing this agreement marks an important step in delivering the growth strategy we presented to investors at our IPO. This acquisition will significantly strengthen our leadership in ready meals and create new opportunities in sandwiches category. We see considerable potential in this category, which has consistently delivered double-digit annual growth, and we expect the underlying demand drivers to remain strong. As Romanian consumers’ purchasing power moves closer to European levels, we believe they will increasingly choose fresh, convenient, ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook products that offer variety, simplify everyday meals and meet their expectations for quality, nutrition and functional benefits. We also look forward to welcoming 380 new colleagues to Cris-Tim upon completion. Their expertise will be an important part of our next stage of growth as we work together to develop new products and raise standards across the category,” stated Radu Timiș Jr., Chief Executive Officer of Cris-Tim Family Holding.

Via Trend is Cris-Tim’s main competitor in the ready-meals category, with a comparable revenue base and a similar product portfolio, while Snack 4U is the largest sandwich producer in Romania. The two companies manufacture branded and private-label products for international retail chains across the country, with sandwiches also distributed through foodservice and traditional retail channels. Their brand portfolio includes Daniela’s, Paparude and Snack 4U.

The acquisition will widen Cris-Tim’s lead in ready meals. Sandwiches represent a strategic category that the company has assessed over recent years and offer substantial potential for vertical integration. Cris-Tim already produces an important share of the ingredients used in sandwich recipes, creating opportunities to combine its production capabilities with Snack 4U’s expertise. Together with Cris-Tim’s nationwide distribution network, this will support new product development, wider product availability and greater efficiency across the supply chain.

Via Trend and Snack 4U operate three production facilities, two owned and one leased, located in Moara Domnească, Ilfov County, Pietroasele, Buzău County, and Bucharest. These include a newly built, modern facility with approximately 8,000 square meters of production space. Alongside Cris-Tim’s existing ready-meals operations at two sites, this infrastructure creates significant opportunities to optimize production. Following completion, the short-term objective is to consolidate the combined ready-meals and sandwich production volumes into no more than two sites, improving capacity utilization and generating efficiencies across production and logistics.

The acquisition also creates an opportunity to deliver Cris-Tim’s expansion plans more efficiently. The capital expenditure plan presented at the time of the IPO included approximately RON 100 million for a new ready-meals factory, including capacity to develop the sandwich category. The facility included in the transaction is comparable in size to the one envisaged by Cris-Tim, allowing the company to pursue these objectives through existing infrastructure. As a result, Cris-Tim expects to significantly revise the planned investment in this project, avoiding duplication of production infrastructure and allocating capital more efficiently.

Based on management’s high-level, indicative assessment of the combined financial information of Via Trend and Snack 4U for 2023–2025, adjusted average annual turnover amounted to approximately RON 143 million, average annual EBITDA to RON 21 million and average annual net profit to RON 9 million, with an EBITDA margin of approximately 14.5%. These unaudited estimates are based on historical Romanian Accounting Standards information, with preliminary adjustments intended to approximate an IFRS basis. They have not been independently verified and do not constitute results derived from complete IFRS financial statements. The figures illustrate the historical scale and profitability of the acquired businesses and are not a forecast of their future contribution to Cris-Tim’s results.

Under the agreement signed with Brainfly Ltd., Cris-Tim will acquire 100% of Via Trend directly and, through Via Trend, 100% of Snack 4U indirectly. The transaction has been approved by Cris-Tim’s Board of Directors and has received both Romanian Competition Council clearance and the required investment-screening clearance. Completion is expected by the end of November 2026, subject to the remaining closing conditions.

Given the expected timing of completion, Cris-Tim’s revenue and profitability targets for 2026 remain unchanged. Following the acquisition, the company intends to absorb Via Trend and Snack 4U through a merger, subject to the relevant corporate approvals and legal procedures.

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Please note that the financial figures of Via Trend and Snack4U are rounded, high-level, indicative management estimates of adjusted annual averages for 2023–2025, rather than results for a single year or cumulative results for the period. The annual averages are calculated from the respective adjusted annual figures; the EBITDA margin is based on the underlying unrounded average annual EBITDA and turnover.

The estimates use RAS financial information with preliminary adjustments intended to approximate International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). They have not been audited, independently reviewed or otherwise independently verified, and a full IFRS conversion has not been completed. They should therefore not be regarded as financial results established in accordance with IFRS and remain subject to revision.

Adjustments include differences in the accounting treatment of goodwill. Under IFRS, recognized goodwill is not amortized but is tested for impairment annually and whenever impairment indicators arise. Eliminating RAS goodwill amortization may affect estimated net profit, subject to applicable tax effects and impairment adjustments, but does not further increase EBITDA where that amortization has already been excluded. EBITDA means earnings before interest, income tax, depreciation and amortization and is an alternative performance measure not defined by IFRS.

For more information, please contact:

CRIS-TIM FAMILY HOLDING S.A.

Zuzanna Kurek, [email protected], +40 742 431 111

About Cris-Tim Family Holding

Cris-Tim is a Romanian entrepreneurial company founded in 1992, listed on the Main Market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange with stock ticker CFH, which over its 33 years of existence has grown from a start-up into the market leader in cold cuts and ready-meals in Romania, both organically and through acquisitions. The company has consistently strengthened its market shares in its target sectors as well as its profitability through substantial investments in technology and logistics, innovation, a strong focus on product quality, competitive raw material sourcing, the development of strong brands, and high levels of employee engagement and retention.

Cris-Tim is present in the retail market with its cold cuts brands “Cris-Tim,” “Matache Măcelaru’,” “Alpinia,” “Obrăjori,” and “Csárdás,” as well as with the “Bunătăți” ready-meals brand. The company is also an emerging producer in the private label segment for major international modern retail chains. Cris-Tim brands appear on the shelves of all 13 retail networks operating in Romania, as well as in more than 15,000 traditional stores. The company also operates a network of 17 company-owned stores and exports its products to 15 European countries.

Cris-Tim Family Holding is currently one of the largest companies operating in Romania’s agri-food sector, with production facilities aligned to modern technologies. The company operates three factories with a combined capacity of 215 tons/day, the main facility being the one in Filipeștii de Pădure, with a production area of 50,000 square meters and a technological capacity of 165 tons/day. Additionally, the company operates a factory in Măgureni and one in Bucharest, each with an individual production capacity of 25 tons/day.