ONE of Malton's biggest employers has been bought out by a Danish company.

Pro-Pak Foods, the £25 million turnover meat packing company and manufacturer of chilled ready meals, which employs 300 staff at York Industrial Park, Malton, has been acquired by the TiCan food group.

TiCan, an independent Danish processor marketing pork globally and employing more than 1,000 people at its site in Jutland, now has controlling interest.

Staff have now been informed of the deal, described as "a merger", which was signed in Denmark late on Tuesday night.

The new Danish owner has given an assurance that Pro-Pak will continue to trade as a UK company with no changes to name, management or staff.

David Longbottom, who with recently departed Ian Watkinson founded the firm in 1993, will continue as managing director and maintain his own personal equity in the venture.

Details of the TiCan deal, in which it acquired the controlling equity of Pro-Pak, have not been disclosed, but the Danish food group's plan is to introduce its Danish ham for slicing and packing at Malton, and to distribute Pro-Pak's chilled ready meals to Denmark, as well as continuing to increase its share of the UK market.

"It's a case of as you were but only more so," said Mark Jenkins, Pro-Pak Foods' sales director. "We waited to inform our staff before making the announcement.

"The staff seem to be fairly comfortable with it.

"They are viewing it as a good news story."

Asked if the change of ownership would mean more jobs, Mr Jenkins said: "We have secured Pro-Pak's future growth and implied in that is more jobs, but there are no specific plans at this stage to increase staff." Mr Longbottom was more specific. "You can say there will be more jobs.

"There is a massive synergy, which I am confident will create more jobs.

"This alliance creates a unique processing proposition that can offer considerable benefits for the UK retailer and consumer of cooked meats."

Pro-Pak has grown between ten and 15 per cent per year since it was started, and three years ago completed a new state-of-the art £3 million factory on the site to cope with the demand for chilled ready meals.

Updated: 10:52 Friday, June 24, 2005