Lion Capital, the private equity company specialising in consumer goods, has acquired FoodVest, the maker of Findus frozen foods and Young’s seafood products, for £1.1bn from CapVest, a smaller buy-out house.

Lyndon Lea, founder of Lion Capital, told the Financial Times that he saw FoodVest as an ideal platform for consolidating the European frozen food market, which is attractive because of its defensive qualities at a time of slowing economic growth.