MOUSCRON, BELGIUM — Cargill is expanding its cocoa and chocolate business in Europe through the acquisition of Schwartauer Werke GmbH & Co. KG Kakao Verarbeitung Berlin (K.V.B.), an integrated chocolate company based in Berlin.

K.V.B. operates two production plants in Berlin with capacity exceeding 75,000 tonnes of chocolate per year. The plants are expected to complement Cargill’s existing cocoa and chocolate facilities in Klein Schierstedt and Hamburg, Germany.

“This acquisition marks a significant step in Cargill’s chocolate growth strategy in Europe and our ability to better serve our existing and future customers,” said Jos de Loor, head of Cargill’s cocoa and chocolate business. “The acquisition will strengthen Cargill’s position in Germany, the largest chocolate market in Europe, and create opportunities to expand our chocolate business into new markets.”

Mr. de Loor added, “The integration of the K.V.B. chocolate assets and people into Cargill will strengthen our ability to deliver efficient and innovative solutions for our customers. We plan to invest significantly in K.V.B.’s facilities to create a superior chocolate house that will enable us to offer customers greater choice, higher quality and extended market reach.”

Hermann Hauertmann, chief executive officer of K.V.B., said the transaction will help K.V.B. expand in Germany as well as internationally.

“The global network of Cargill opens up new opportunities in terms of supply chain and optimized cost structures to the benefit of our customers,” Mr. Hauertmann said. “We are confident that our people and our operations will deliver significant value to Cargill’s existing cocoa and chocolate business and look forward to develop innovative quality products for our valued customers.”