Scalzo Foods

What Scalzo Foods does

Scalzo Foods (legal entity Scalzo Trading Co Proprietary Limited) is an Australian privately held food ingredient supply and contract manufacturing business founded in 1977 in Melbourne by Quin Scalzo, now run as a family-controlled enterprise with his son Michael Scalzo as Managing Director. The company sources, processes, and distributes across eight ingredient categories — nuts, fruit and coconut, seeds/grains/rice, vegetables/herbs/spices, emulsifiers/thickeners/starches, beans/pulses/proteins, and snacking products — with a procurement footprint of approximately 27,000 MT of nuts, 17,000 MT of fruit and vegetables, and 25,000 MT of cereals, seeds, and grains annually, drawn from 100+ ANZ suppliers and a network spanning 40+ international markets.

Manufacturing is conducted at owned facilities including the Kensington plant (1997), Campbellfield plant (2011), and the Highbrook NZ plant (2012), combined capacity of 100+ million units per year and 3,800+ SKUs, supported by the Altona Distribution Centre with 15,000 ambient and 2,200 cool storage pallet positions, handling 4,000 containers and 350,000 pallets annually through an in-house international logistics team. Vertical integration was added in 2016 via the wholly-owned Australian Premium Dried Fruit (APDF) subsidiary, enabling paddock-to-plate control of vine fruit (sultanas, raisins, currants) from own Mildura vineyards through processing to packing. Quality systems are anchored by BRC, HACCP, and FICA accreditations and a proprietary Vendor Assurance Program.

The business operates a sales-led B2B go-to-market model with quote-based pricing on multi-year contracts, serving major Australian and New Zealand food manufacturers and retailers — including Coles, and through its Freshlife and Nutters consumer brands (launched 2017), Countdown, New World, Pak'nSave, and Fresh Choice supermarkets across NZ and Australia. Revenue streams combine ingredient supply (transaction-based), contract manufacturing and co-packing (professional services), and proprietary consumer brands (one-time retail purchase), with reported revenue of over $400M AUD as of 2015 across 300+ employees. In 2021 the company became the exclusive Australian ingredient agent for Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc.

Name

Scalzo Foods

Legal name

Scalzo Trading Co Proprietary Limited

Website

https://scalzofoods.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Scalzo Foods is a privately held Australian food ingredient supplier and contract manufacturer, founded 1977, sourcing and processing nuts, dried fruit, seeds, grains, and related ingredients for major food manufacturers and retailers across Australia and New Zealand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Ingredient Supply and Manufacturing

NAICS

Snack Food Manufacturing (31191), Roasted Nuts and Peanut Butter Manufacturing (311911), Fruit and Vegetable Preserving and Specialty Food Manufacturing (3114), Breakfast Cereal Manufacturing (31123), Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Merchant Wholesalers (42448), Food Manufacturing (311)

SIC

Wholesale-Groceries, General Line (5141), Food And Kindred Products (2000), Grain Mill Products (2040), Canned, Frozen & Preservd Fruit, Veg & Food Specialties (2030)

akta.pro primary industry

Nuts, Seeds & Dried Fruit Trading/Wholesale (AFAIAKAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food-Grade Additives & Functional Ingredients Trading/Wholesale (AFAIAKAI), Nuts, Seeds & Trail Mix Snacks (CRADABAF), Gluten-Free & Specialty Grain-Based Foods Manufacturing (GF pasta/cereals, ancient grains) (AFAKABAK)

Keywords

• Food ingredient supply
• Contract food manufacturing
• Dried fruit ingredients
• Nut ingredient supply
• Food ingredient distribution

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Ingredient Supply: B2B supply of food ingredients to manufacturers and food businesses including nuts, dried fruit, grains, vegetables, spices, and specialty ingredients. Core business serving major Australian and New Zealand food manufacturers and retailers.
2. Own Brand Products: Sale of proprietary brands Freshlife and Nutters through retail channels. Freshlife includes dried fruit, nuts and snacking mixes sold in Countdown, New World, Pak'nSave, Fresh Choice supermarkets in NZ and Australian supermarkets. Nutters brand offers variety of nut snacks.
3. Contract Manufacturing: Co-manufacturing services including dry roasting, oil roasting, blending, powder processing, sweet and savoury coating, oat toasting for third-party food manufacturers and brand owners.
4. Contract Packing Services: Packaging capabilities including sachets, pillow packs, block bottom bags, stand up pouches, tubs, snack packs, lined cartons, bulker bags, and double walled paper bags.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Scalzo Foods sources, manufactures, and supplies a broad range of food ingredients including nuts, dried fruit, coconut, seeds, grains, rice, vegetables, herbs, spices, emulsifiers, thickeners, starches, beans, pulses, and proteins to food manufacturers and retailers across Australia and New Zealand. The company also provides co-manufacturing services (roasting, blending, coating, powder processing, oat toasting) and contract packing across multiple packaging formats, and sells consumer brands Freshlife and Nutters through supermarket channels.

Product overview

Scalzo Foods is a privately owned food ingredient supply and manufacturing company operating since 1977. The business operates as a platform offering both ingredient categories and co-manufacturing services. The product portfolio includes two consumer brands—Freshlife (dried fruit, nuts and snacking mixes available in Australian and New Zealand supermarkets) and Nutters (flavored nut snacks at Countdown)—alongside a comprehensive ingredient supply business across nuts, dried fruit, coconut, seeds, grains, rice, vegetables, herbs, spices, emulsifiers, thickeners, starches, beans, pulses, and proteins. The company complements its product offerings with co-manufacturing capabilities (roasting, blending, coating, packaging), quality assurance services, and innovation/development support. Scalzo Foods also procures approximately 27,000 MT of nuts, 17,000 MT of fruit and vegetables, and 25,000 MT of cereals, seeds and grains annually.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Freshlife: Consumer brand available at Countdown, New World, Pak'nSave and Fresh Choice stores in New Zealand, and supermarkets across Australia. Product range includes dried fruit, nuts and snacking mixes.
• Nutters

Products and services

• Freshlife Consumer brand of dried fruit, nuts and snacking mixes sold through Countdown, New World, Pak'nSave and Fresh Choice supermarkets in New Zealand and across Australian supermarkets.
• Nutters Consumer snacking brand offering a variety of nuts including natural, salted, flavoured, fruity and indulgent blends, available at Countdown Supermarkets across New Zealand.
• Co-Manufacturing Services Manufacturing services including dry roasting, oil roasting, blending, powder processing, sweet and savory coating, and oat toasting. Packaging services cover sachets (30g-50g), pillow packs (50g-2kg), block bottom bags, stand up pouches (50g-1kg), tubs (50g-1kg), snack packs (14g-40g), lined cartons (2kg-20kg), bulker bags (100kg-1000kg), and double walled paper bags (5kg-25kg), delivered for third-party food manufacturers and brand owners.
• Ingredient Sourcing and Supply Local and global ingredient sourcing from over 100 Australian and New Zealand suppliers and an international network across 40 markets. Procures 27,000 MT of nuts, 17,000 MT of fruit and vegetables, and 25,000 MT of cereals, seeds and grains annually under a Vendor Assurance Program with strict quality and ethical standards.
• Innovation and Development Services Dedicated innovation team providing consumer insights, food industry and market trends research, product concepts, packaging concepts, and proactive customer presentations to support customer product development.
• Quality Assurance Services Risk management, food safety, quality control, vendor assurance program, analytical and sensory testing, allergen management program with cross-contact risk mitigation, backed by BRC, HACCP, and FICA accreditations.

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 October 2021Scalzo Foods appointed as Australian ingredient agent for Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. based out of Melbourne. Partnership enables distribution of cranberry ingredients in Australian market with focus on innovation and adding value to drive mutually beneficial outcomes for Ocean Spray Ingredients.
• Australian Premium Dried Fruit (APDF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVertical integration partnership enabling true paddock to plate solution. Scalzo Foods sources premium vine fruit (sultanas, raisins, currants) from own Mildura Victoria vineyards through APDF state-of-the-art processing facility to manufacturing plants for packing before delivery to customers.
• SunriceminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorProud distributors of Sunrice products including rice products available in whole grain, parboiled and broken form, IQF and instant cooking rices.
• NutekminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorProud distributors of Nutek products including range of sodium reduction products in the vegetables, herbs and spices category.
• Foodbank VictoriaminorOthersScalzo Foods proud supporters of Foodbank Victoria. In 2016, donated 1247 kilos of food equating to 2244 meals for Victorians facing food insecurity. Ongoing community partnership supporting food security.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves15 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Manassen Foods: Australian specialty food importer, distributor and brand owner covering nuts, dried fruit, grains and snacking categories across ANZ retailers. Closest direct competitor in scale, business model and category mix, including private-label manufacturing for major supermarkets.
• Riviana Foods: Australian food importer and distributor of rice, oils, condiments and specialty ingredients with own brand portfolio. Highly comparable as a B2B ingredient supplier serving major ANZ retailers and food manufacturers with overlapping supplier base and customer set.
• Manildra Group: Australia's largest flour, starch and gluten manufacturer with grain sourcing and processing capabilities. Directly comparable grain-milling and ingredient manufacturing footprint serving ANZ food manufacturers with overlapping category overlap in starches, flours and specialty grain products.
• Anchor Food Professionals (Fonterra): Fonterra's foodservice ingredient brand operating across NZ and ANZ with dairy-based ingredients and broader specialty ingredient supply. Comparable as an ingredient distributor and co-manufacturer serving food manufacturers and foodservice operators in the ANZ region.
• Prolife Foods: New Zealand-based snack food and ingredient manufacturer producing nuts, dried fruit, seeds and confectionery products under own brands and private label. Closest trans-Tasman peer in nuts and snacking manufacturing with overlapping customers at Countdown and NZ supermarkets.
• Edlyn Foods: Australian food manufacturer of desserts, beverages and ingredient bases supplying foodservice and food manufacturing customers. Comparable contract manufacturing model, scale and ANZ customer base, though more focused on dairy-based ingredients.
• Carman's Kitchen (Peckish): Australian muesli, granola and better-for-you snack brand owned by Peckish. Direct competitor in the premium ANZ snacking category with overlapping retail customers (Coles, Woolworths) and broadly comparable ingredient sourcing needs.
• Allied Mills: Leading Australian flour and grain miller (joint venture between GrainCorp and Cargill). Comparable grain milling, ingredient supply and food manufacturer customer base with overlapping product categories in flours, grains and bakery ingredients.

Broad incumbents

• SunRice: Largest Australian rice processor and branded rice/micronutrient supplier listed on the ASX. Already a Scalzo distribution partner; comparable in grain processing and ANZ retail distribution though broader in branded rice categories.
• Olam International: Global food and agri-business supplying nuts, cocoa, coffee, grains and edible oils across 60+ countries with deep sourcing network. Comparable B2B ingredient trading and supply chain model at much larger scale, providing a benchmark for Scalzo's potential international expansion.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/scalzo-foods
• Facebookfacebook.com/Scalzo-Foods-104881645123857

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Scalzo Foods