Hain Celestial has finalized the sale of all of its equity interest in its Hain Pure Protein (HPP) subsidiary, the company announced on July 1.
HPP consists of the FreeBird and Empire Kosher poultry businesses.
The company in May announced that it had reached an agreement to sell what was left of HPP to Aterian Investment Partners for a price of $80 million.
On its website, Aterian Investment Partners identified itself as a company that “invests in industry-leading, middle market businesses providing resources to further enhance operations, growth and investment initiatives.”
Hain Celestial, a diverse company focused on natural and organic products, had been seeking a buyer for its HPP operations since February 2008. At the time, HPP also included the Plainville Farms turkey business. However, one year later during a quarterly earnings call, Hain Celesital Chief Financial Officer James Langrock revealed that HPP would likely be sold in “multiple transactions.”
A few weeks after that comment was made, Hain Celestial reported that it had sold its Plainville Farms operations to Plainville Brands LLC, a new group of private investors. Terms of that transaction were not announced.
In a press release, Hain Celestial a diverse company focused on natural and organic products, said it would use the proceeds of its HPP divestiture to pay down debt. The company’s CEO, Mark L. Schiller, earlier said he believed HPP would “generate better results under the ownership of an organization that is focused on the protein category.”
Hain Celestial’s 2019 fiscal year concluded on June 30. It reported its earnings for the third quarter on May 9, the same day it announced its intent to sell HPP to Aterian Investment Partners.
According to the WATT PoultryUSA Top Poultry Companies survey, HPP is the 25th largest broiler company in the United States, processing 1.85 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis. It ranked 14th among U.S. turkey producers, processing 198 million pounds of turkey annually.
