Dole Completes Merger with IPO

Adrianne DeLuca

As the final step to complete a merger with European fresh produce company Total Produce that began in February, this week Dole Packaged Foods intends to raise $559 million from an initial public offering of 26 million shares priced between $20 to $23. The company is reportedly planning to begin trading under the DOLE ticker symbol on the New York Stock Exchange.

The IPO is the final step in joining the two global fresh produce leaders with the intention of bringing the company’s valuation to a minimum of $215 million on the US market. Once the merger is complete, Dole’s official owner, David Murdock, will resign control of the company according to a report from Produce Report.

The newly formed company will begin to operate under the name Dole plc and its European counterpart will cease trading on Euronext Dublin and the London Stock Exchange. Dole plc has the opportunity to increase the Dole brand’s presence in Europe and further expand its global network across the produce industry. Dole plc is incorporated and globally headquartered in Ireland with an American base in Charlotte, NC.

“Our intention to list the new company in the United States marks an exciting next step for Dole plc,” said Chairman of Total Produce Carl McCann in a press release. “The combined company will become the largest global player with over 170 years of history in fresh produce in both companies, a highly diversified portfolio, resilient earnings and a strong balance sheet that positions us well for accelerated growth.”

The merger forms the world’s largest fresh produce provider, joining Dole’s 109,000 acres of land, 162 distribution and manufacturing facilities, 75 picking houses and 12 cold storage facilities with Total Produce’s global import and distribution network. The geographic expansion and a diversified product portfolio resulting from the merger could allow Dole plc to extend its product lines while pursuing additional M&A opportunities.

Although plans for the IPO and merger were announced early this year, the process actually began in 2018 when Total Produce acquired a 45% stake in Dole, according to a press release. Dole was publicly traded until 2013 when Murdock, the company’s then-CEO, took it private. Dole had been eyeing an IPO for sometime and filed again in 2017 but eventually withdrew the F-1 filing after talks to sell the company to a Belgian firm were unsuccessful.

The company recently expanded its juice and fruit bowl lines into the ever-expanding functional food and beverage categories. Dole’s Frutify juice line is available in Glow, Energize and Replenish varieties and the new fruit bowl line follows a similar theme by targeting adult consumers with functional ingredients such as green tea extract and turmeric.

Both Dole and Total Produce respectively have lengthy histories in the North American and European produce markets and both were founded almost 170 years ago. The newly formed company offers over 300 products ranging from fresh produce to frozen smoothie packs with produce sourced from over 30 countries. Dole services retail, wholesale and foodservice accounts in over 80 countries worldwide and is the world’s leading producer of pineapples and bananas. Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, and Davy are the lead underwriters and seven other investment banks are working on this deal.