Feb 01, 2008. /Lesprom Network/. Ahlstrom today announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Friend Group, which consists of West Carrollton Parchment Company and West Carrollton Converting Company. The Group is a producer of vegetable parchment and has parchmentizing and converting operations located in West Carrollton, Ohio. The sale price was not disclosed. Friend Group employs 162 people and has two sites in West Carrollton serving mainly the US food packaging market. The new entity will be integrated into Ahlstrom's vegetable parchment product line, which is part of the Technical Papers business area currently operating two sites manufacturing vegetable parchment in France and serving customers globally. Ahlstrom expects the deal to close during the 1Q 2008. Vegetable parchment is a specialty paper made from cellulose fibers and it has numerous applications in packaging, food, textile, furniture, graphic and other industries. Vegetable parchment has unique properties such as excellent greaseproof and strength characteristics and high water and heat resistance. Ahlstrom is the leading global manufacturer of both specialty papers and nonwovens, using natural and synthetic fibers to produce roll goods.