Campbell Soup has agreed to offload its Bolthouse Farms division to private equity firm Butterfly for approximately $510 million, in a deal which completes the full divestiture of the company’s Campbell Fresh division.
Campbell launched a portfolio review in August 2018, which outlined its plan to divest both its Campbell Fresh and Campbell International businesses, as the company aims to significantly reduce debt and boost its balance sheet.
As part of this process, Campbell recently announced the sale of its Garden Fresh Gourmet salsa brand to an affiliate of Fountain of Health USA, and Campbell’s estimates that the proceeds from the divestiture of the Campbell Fresh businesses will allow the company to reduce debt by approximately $570 million.
Campbell acquired Bolthouse Farms in 2012, and the brand produces a range of organic beverages, dressings and carrots. Bolthouse Farms employs over 2,200 people and operates facilities in Bakersfield and Santa Monica, California; Hodgkins, Illinois; Wheatley, Ontario and Prosser, Washington.
Mark Clouse, Campbell’s President and CEO, said: “The sale of Bolthouse Farms supports our strategy to focus on our two core North American businesses, Campbell Snacks and Campbell Meals and Beverages, where we have iconic brands and strong market positions.”
Butterfly Co-Founder Adam Waglay added: “We are thrilled to partner with a vertically-integrated produce and fresh food leader with a history as rich as Bolthouse Farms, and we believe the company’s future is very bright especially given the continued rise of plant-based food in the diet of today’s consumer.
Dustin Beck, Butterfly’s other co-founder said: “We are proud to support Bolthouse Farms in further bolstering its strong positioning within fresh carrots and chilled premium beverages, and are excited to back a group of seasoned operators as passionate about produce as Jeff and his team to lead what is already a strong organization.”
By Martin White
Source: FoodBev
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