stutensee, october 20, 2014. the oystar group &ndash one of the world&39s leading manufacturers of packaging machinery &ndash has sold its secondary packaging division af to mutares ag. this marks the completion of the strategic concentration on the primary packaging business for the dairy and food industries oystar initiated in 2010.now oystar can devote its full attention to the market for primary packaging solutions,&rdquo oystar&rsquos ceo markus ehl emphasized after signing the contract with mutares. &ldquothis isn&rsquot just where our strengths lie it&rsquos also where the group forsees the greatest growth potential.&rdquo the parties agreed not to disclose the purchase price. all that is left to finish the transaction is for the antitrust authorities to approve the sale, which they will likely do in the coming weeks.oystar enjoys a strong market position internationally in the key segments of thermoform, fill and seal for cups and fill and seal for preformed cups and bottles, as well as wrapping machinery for butter, margarine, etc. since 2011 oystar has been reporting clear, continuously growing sales and earnings. now enabled to focus efforts on the market for primary packaging, the group will continue to stay on its growth course and solidify its leading position in the industry.ehl also highlighted the development potential that the sale holds for af. &ldquoas an independent enterprise, af now has the chance to apply its significant expertise to other industries without having to align itself to our group&rsquos needs,&rdquo explained the oystar ceo. &ldquothat was another principal reason behind the sale.&rdquo under the umbrella of the oystar group, af mainly operated in the dairy market, which is extremely important for oystar. working with the new owner, af can now approach markets it wasn&rsquot able to focus on in the past.oystar will continue to offer its clients complete packaging lines for product filling through to final packaging, either together with af or with other partners as necessary.about oystar groupoystar. the packaging group is one of the world&rsquos leading suppliers of packaging machinery, technology and services. oystar has extensive knowhow in the key industries of dairy products and food. based in stutensee near karlsruhe, germany, the holding company currently represents 8 production locations in europe and asia as well as numerous sales and service companies. at present oystar holding employs a workforce of more than 1,000 worldwide and generated a total of approximately eur 200 million in sales in 2013.
