NEW YORK, Oct. 12, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Paine &
Partners, LLC ("Paine & Partners"), a global private equity
investment firm focused on investing in food and agribusiness,
today announced that it has completed the sale of Sunrise Growers
("Sunrise" or the "Company") to SunOpta, Inc. ("SunOpta")
(Nasdaq:STKL) (TSX:SOY) for a total value of approximately
$450 million.
Paine & Partners acquired Sunrise in March 2013 and provided strategic leadership and
resources to transform the business. With Paine & Partners'
support, Sunrise completed three acquisitions and made significant
growth capital investments across its platform. These
initiatives have resulted in strong growth in both revenue and
EBITDA and have significantly expanded and diversified Sunrise's
supply chain, customer base and its processing and distribution
footprint. As a result, Sunrise has established itself as the
clear leader in the private label frozen fruit category, which is
one of the fastest growing food categories at retail.
"We are pleased to announce the completion of this transaction,
representing the culmination of our strategic investment in
Sunrise," said Kevin Schwartz,
President and a founding Partner of Paine & Partners.
"Since our acquisition of Sunrise, we have worked closely with the
management team to significantly grow the business through
strategic acquisitions and growth capital investments, positioning
Sunrise to capitalize on the tremendous opportunity in the private
label frozen fruit category. With the transaction completed, we are
confident that Sunrise will continue to thrive under the leadership
of SunOpta."
"We had a great partnership with Paine & Partners that
resulted in significantly strengthening our business and expanding
our frozen fruit platform," said Edward
Haft, President and CEO of Sunrise. "We benefited from their
support, focus on strategic growth initiatives and expertise across
the food and agribusiness value chain. Working together with
Paine & Partners allowed us to build on Sunrise's position as
the leading private label frozen fruit supplier with a global
footprint and strong customer and grower partner relationships.
Looking ahead, we are excited to be part of the global
team at SunOpta and believe we are well positioned for continued
growth and success."
About Sunrise
Sunrise Growers is the
leading processor of conventional and organic frozen fruit in
the United States. Sunrise Growers
offers a variety of frozen fruit products and packaging formats
serving retail private label and foodservice customers. Sunrise's
global sourcing network provides consistent year-round access to
fruit and its highly scaled, strategically located operational
footprint provides the company a low-cost operating position.
Sunrise Growers is headquartered in California with approximately 300 full-time
and 2,000 seasonal employees.
About Paine & Partners
Paine & Partners
is a private equity firm that focuses on complex investment
opportunities in the fast-growing, dynamic global food and
agribusiness sectors. Paine & Partners' team includes 25
investment, operations and finance professionals focused on
investing globally across the food and agribusiness value chain and
throughout cycles. The firm currently invests through its
$893 million Paine & Partners
Fund IV, which is solely dedicated to agribusiness investing.
For further information, see www.painepartners.com.
Contacts:
Andy Brimmer / Aaron
Palash
Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer
Katcher
+1 212-355-4449
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SOURCE Paine & Partners