Michigan-based Natural American Foods, a portfolio company and affiliate of private equity firm Peak Rock Capital, has agreed to acquire Sweet Harvest Foods Co. The deal will combine two of the leading honey companies in the U.S. and will increase the share of honey-related businesses in Peak Rock’s portfolio.
With offices in Austin, Texas and Brussels, Belgium, Peak Rock is a leading middle market private equity firm that invests in companies in the food and beverage, healthcare, energy, tech, distribution and logistic, consumer, and metals sectors. The firm looks for companies that have a revenue flow of between $50 million and $1 billion that can benefit from Peak Rock’s support in driving rapid growth and profit improvement achieved through operational and strategic change.
Founded in 1923 near Minneapolis, Minnesota, Sweet Harvest is a leading producer of honey, peanut butter, and syrup food products that are sold to national grocery chains, retailers, and industry customers under brand names that include MEL-O and PB Crave.
Natural American Foods is another leading honey company with operations in California and Michigan that produce honey under the Miller’s American brand name, and also produces and distributes honey and sweeteners for supply to food manufacturers and buyers in the food service space. The company, which places a focus on sustainability and natural ingredients, retains the natural pollen in every batch of its honey so third party verification can be carried out tracing each batch back to its point of origin and floral source.
Combined, the two companies will create a unified, leading honey business with a total of more than 200 years of operations and service.
“We are delighted to combine the Sweet Harvest and Natural American Foods businesses, further expanding the Company’s capabilities and reach,” said Robert Strauss, managing director of Peak Rock Capital and director of Natural American Foods. “The acquisition of Sweet Harvest is a great example of the kind of strategic transaction that Natural American Foods continues to seek in the natural sweetener industry.”
Under the terms of the deal Curt Riess, president of Sweet Harvest Foods will join the Board of Natural American Foods.
“Sweet Harvest and Natural American Foods have each established strong reputations for producing high quality products and working to deliver outstanding customer service,” said Riess. I’m looking forward to our partnership and working with Natural American Foods’ talented management team to accelerate the growth of the combined businesses.”
A Honey of a Deal
Positioning itself as a key backer within the commercial honey segment could prove strategically beneficial for Peak Rock.
Consumer push back against white sugar has surged in recent years as negative public opinion rises with growing scientific research that connects sugar content to obesity and other health threats such as certain cancers that are linked to excessive weight gain. These sentiments are driving increasingly health-conscious consumers to opt for more natural substitutes.
Honey has been able to gain from this health-centric shift in multiple ways – first as a more natural and traceable option versus white sugar, second as a functional food that is known for its anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, and lastly as an increasingly popular ingredient in health and beauty products.
It is these driving factors that are contributing to the expectation by Global Industry Analysts that the global honey market will reach a volume of 2.4 million tons by 2022.
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Lynda Kiernan
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