Hain Pure Protein Corporation Announces the Acquisition of Turkey Operations From Pilgrim's Pride Corporation
This strategic investment positions Hain Pure Protein at the forefront of the natural and organic sector of the poultry industry and gives us capabilities to expand our offerings of branded, premium products.
11/03/08 Hain Pure Protein Corporation, a joint venture between Pegasus Capital Advisors, L.P., with a 49.9% minority interest, and The Hain Celestial Group, Inc., with a 50.1% controlling interest, announced the acquisition of the turkey production facility and distribution center of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation in New Oxford, Pennsylvania, by its newly formed wholly-owned subsidiary, New Oxford Foods, LLC.
"This strategic investment positions Hain Pure Protein at the forefront of the natural and organic sector of the poultry industry and gives us capabilities to expand our offerings of branded, premium products. As the facility immediately begins to transition to antibiotic-free, adding New Oxford Foods to existing brands Plainville Farms and FreeBird Chicken gives Hain Pure Protein additional scale with the capacity to meet increasing volume demands and for value-added all natural, antibiotic-free chicken and turkey products," said Irwin D. Simon, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hain Celestial.
"We entered the category in order to establish a consistent source for high quality natural and organic antibiotic-free poultry as ingredients in our branded food products," continued Irwin Simon. "After nearly three successful years, we have vertically integrated while there has been exceptional growth in the category, and we are excited about the demand for healthful turkey and chicken products in response to consumer concerns about beef and pork. We continuously seek innovative products to satisfy consumers who want to eat healthier products and are very pleased with the response to Hain Pure Protein."
New Oxford Foods will become part of the Hain Pure Protein reporting unit, which is consolidated into the results of Hain Celestial. Hain Celestial expects that the addition of New Oxford Foods will be accretive to earnings in its fiscal 2009 year. Terms of the acquisition, which closed, were not disclosed.
