Company is exploring opportunities in fine cheeses and everyday products, but says goal is not acquisitions for scale
After finalizing the acquisition of Levitare, a leading buffalo cheese producer in São Paulo, dairy company Tirolez is already considering the possibility of closing new deals in 2026. The transaction was completed on Tuesday (2). Tirolez CEO Marcel de Barros says the acquisition may have been “the first of many.”
“If everything works out, we should have more news in 2026,” Barros told Valor, noting that developments would likely come in the second half of the year. “We are looking for market opportunities. There has been a lot of movement in the dairy sector, and Tirolez is active on the buying side,”
he added.
The Levitare deal was the first acquisition in Tirolez’s 45-year history and comes as Barros completes two years as chief executive following a career at Nestlé. He said future transactions could involve adjacent categories, such as fine and specialty cheeses, while everyday products are also on the company’s radar. Even so, he stressed that the objective is not to “buy to gain scale.”
“Last year was very difficult for the sector. With interest rates at these levels, some companies chose to enter the market and eventually sell their businesses. Many deals have emerged — some already announced, others still in the pipeline,” Barros said. “For companies with a solid position and an adequate capital structure, opportunities arise, and those are the opportunities we at Tirolez are pursuing.”
The purchase of Levitare was announced on October 6, 2025. The deal was approved by the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) in November, without restrictions, in an expedited process. Barros said the review moved quickly because the two companies have low market concentration. December and January were then devoted to fulfilling the conditions precedent that allowed Tirolez to take over Levitare’s operations.
The first step was consolidating distribution operations so that Levitare products will now be invoiced and shipped through Tirolez’s distribution center, located along the Raposo Tavares Highway.
“With this, we were able to begin reducing logistics costs and streamlining operations,”
Barros noted.
Although Tirolez has already acquired Levitare, the buffalo cheese specialist will continue operating independently throughout 2026, as the companies plan to merge at the start of the next fiscal year.
“We will prepare everything to merge it with Tirolez in January 2027,”
Barros added.
The acquisition is expected to boost the Tirolez group’s revenue by 10% in its first year. The Levitare brand will remain in place, with a portfolio of about 50 SKUs serving both the food service and consumer markets. For now, no additional investments in the factory are planned.
Asked about the challenge of producing buffalo milk in a country with a much smaller buffalo herd than cattle, Barros said he sees it as a major opportunity.
“Not only for the industry, but also for buffalo breeders, with whom we want to work together to expand production and productivity.”
He noted that the buffalo dairy market is highly concentrated in the Southeast, but said there are opportunities in the South, the Northeast, and the Central-West. The Northeast, in fact, is currently the region contributing most to the brand’s growth.
Tirolez ended 2025 with single-digit growth — Barros did not disclose the percentage. He said the company’s goal of achieving double-digit expansion was not met due to the negative impact of prices. Profitability, however, rose at a double-digit pace.
“We placed a strong focus on efficiency gains throughout our value chain.”
Growth was also stronger in the food service segment, which supplies products to restaurants and other food establishments. Last year, to strengthen its position in this area, the company launched the Tirolez Profissional platform.
Tirolez currently holds about 5% of Brazil’s cheese market. According to marketing director Andrea Köhler, the company’s ambition is to become the most recognized cheese brand in the country.
Source: Valor International
