Netherlands chemical company DSM has made a big move in animal nutrition with a EUR465 million (£300 million) deal to acquire Tortuga, a privately held Brazilian company that specialises in dietary supplements for cattle.

Tortuga employs 1200 people across three production sites in Brazil, plus the headquarters in São Paulo. It expects to generate sales of EUR385 million for 2012.

DSM says that the global market for nutritional supplements for ruminants – a group of mammals that includes cattle and sheep – is EUR4 billion, and growing by 3% per year. Furthermore, the market for supplements comprising organic trace minerals – a strong area for Tortuga – is growing by 7-10%.

The acquisition is the seventh that DSM has made in the nutrition area since September 2010 – having spent EUR1.8 billion in total.