Middleby Corp. Acquires Automatic Bar Controls

The Middleby Corp., best known for its broad presence in the cooking equipment market, announced Dec. 18 that it has acquired Automatic Bar Controls Inc. Also known under its brand name, Wunder-Bar, the Vacaville, Calif., company manufactures beverage dispensing systems for restaurant chains, c-stores and foodservice operations; it has annual revenues of approximately $30 million.   

“The beverage business is a highly profitable and fast-growing category for our customers.  We continue to see our customers investing in equipment solutions to expand their beverage offerings,” stated Middleby Corp. Chairman/CEO Selim Bassoul. “We are excited about the addition of the Wunder-Bar brand to our portfolio of innovative foodservice equipment and believe there are significant opportunities to grow this business by leveraging existing Middleby customer relationships and our strong international presence.”

Wunder-Bar joins more than 30 brands in Middleby’s foodservice equipment portfolio. The Elgin, Ill., company also owns more than a dozen food processing companies and residential kitchen equipment companies.