International mid-market M&A exercise throughout the food and beverage sector remained broadly stable in 2025. Whereas deal volumes have been largely unchanged 12 months on 12 months, whole deal worth elevated modestly to $20.4 billion, in accordance with a joint report from Baker Tilly and Mergermarket.
The report exhibits that mid-market deal worth elevated 1% 12 months on 12 months in 2025, whereas deal quantity slipped 1% to 187 transactions. In line with the researchers, the efficiency factors to a market the place buyers remain selective however are nonetheless prepared to commit capital to companies with differentiated profiles.
“Dealmakers seem prepared to put in writing greater cheques however just for belongings with clear strategic flavour: manufacturers with pricing energy, companies tied to well being and wellness, and platforms that add scale in slow-growth markets. On the identical time, portfolio restructuring stays a dominant theme, as main food and beverage companies divest non-core belongings,” mentioned Harsh Maheshwari, world advisory companies chief at Baker Tilly.
Supply: Baker Tilly
Offers by area
Regionally, Asia Pacific remained the main marketplace for mid-market mergers & acquisitions in 2025, accounting for 41% of deal quantity and 39% of deal worth, reflecting continued investor curiosity within the area’s beneficial demographics, urbanisation and rising demand for premium and handy food merchandise.
Whereas North America accounted for 21% of mid-market deal worth and 17% of quantity in 2025, totals throughout the 12 months declined sharply: year-on-year drops of 27% by worth and 24% by quantity since 2024.
The area’s pullback displays in accordance with Baker Tilly extra cautious M&A setting, with dealmakers pausing exercise amid tariff uncertainty and evolving regulatory dynamics.
Western Europe in the meantime remained resilient, accounting for twenty-four% of deal worth and 23% of deal quantity in 2025, broadly in step with its share of general mid-market exercise. Deal worth rose 15% year-on-year and quantity was up a modest 2%,.
Supply: Baker Tilly
Cross-border offers
Throughout all main areas, cross-border exercise was weaker, highlighting a extra cautious strategy to worldwide enlargement. General, cross-border mid-market deal worth fell 31% to $6.6 billion, whereas quantity dropped 27% to 54 offers, as buyers contended with geopolitical uncertainty, regulatory scrutiny and extra complicated execution situations.
In Asia Pacific, cross-border deal worth declined 13% to $1.9 billion and quantity fell 15% to 17 offers, though the area nonetheless recorded the best cross-border deal rely of any market. North America noticed a steeper pullback, with inbound deal worth down 44% to $1.6 billion and quantity falling 31% to 11 offers, whereas outbound exercise by North American buyers additionally weakened, with worth down 33% to $1.8 billion and quantity down 44% to 10 offers.
In Western Europe, inbound deal worth fell 26% to $2.4 billion and quantity dropped 38% to fifteen offers, whereas outbound exercise declined 27% by worth to $2.8 billion and 21% by quantity to 22 offers, though European buyers remained probably the most energetic outbound bidders globally.
Supply: Baker Tilly
Food versus beverage
The report additionally exhibits that the food sub-sector continued to dominate mid-market dealmaking, accounting for 76% of deal worth and 82% of quantity in 2025.
The authors mentioned that demand for more healthy merchandise, handy codecs and premium choices is anticipated to proceed shaping deal exercise via 2026 and into 2027, with acquisitive curiosity more likely to remain strongest in classes aligned to altering client preferences.
The beverage sub-sector accounted for twenty-four% of deal worth and 18% of deal quantity, with exercise more and more formed by demand for more healthy, purposeful and premium merchandise.
Supply: Baker Tilly
The outlook for 2026
Commenting on the outlook for 2026, Maheshwari famous that deal exercise is anticipated to remain supported by ongoing company portfolio reshaping, demand for well being and wellness-focused belongings, and a steadily enhancing financing backdrop.
“Whereas cross-border exercise could take longer to get better, the underlying fundamentals of the food and beverage sector proceed to supply enticing alternatives for strategic buyers,” he mentioned.
Buyers are anticipated to ramp up their focus on classes such as low- and no-alcohol drinks, purposeful drinks and different better-for-you alternate options, as shoppers (significantly youthful generations) proceed to average alcohol consumption and transfer away from conventional sugary drinks.
The worldwide market trajectory is anticipated to see diverging paths by deal kind, section and market. “What makes mid-market food & beverage so compelling proper now could be the range of deal circulation. Mature markets are producing carve-outs and succession-driven alternatives, whereas high-growth markets are surfacing youthful, faster-growing targets in classes that hardly existed a decade in the past. Each provide actual alternatives for various causes.”
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