A Dozen Cousins Acquired By Verde Valle Foods

Creole, Caribbean and Latin American-inspired food brand A Dozen Cousins announced today it has been acquired by rice and bean manufacturer Verde Valle Foods, the U.S. subsidiary of Verde Valle. Founder and CEO Ibraheem Basir will continue to lead the brand and the business’ growth as general manager. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“I couldn’t be more excited to partner with the team at Verde Valle,” said Basir in a press release. “They are trailblazers in the world of pouched meals, and they are going to dramatically strengthen the supply chain and make it easier to share our products with more people. At the same time, we will be able to invest more in innovation and marketing to continue building a brand that people love.”

Sixteen-year old Verde Valle claims to be the first brand to introduce beans in a pouched format, making the business combination a natural fit for A Dozen Cousins’ lineup of ready-to-eat beans, rice and seasoning sauces; a spokesperson confirmed that Verde Valle has not previously supplied or manufactured A Dozen Cousins’ products.

Third-generation family-owned Verde owns and operates its own CPG brand, Isadora, which sells ready-to-eat bean and Mexican meals at select retailers including Walmart, Kroger and Alberstons. Originally founded in Guadalajara, Mexico, Isadora products are category leaders in the prepared bean set in Mexico, and Verde Valle has expanded its reach into Hispanic markets in the U.S. in recent years.

Unlike A Dozen Cousins’ clean-label, plant-protein focused assortment, Isadora’s meal products are more conventional and contain animal protein such as chicken and beef; the transaction gives Verde Valle a foothold across dietary needs and product positionings within the category.

Los Angeles-based A Dozen Cousins was founded in 2019 and is distributed to retailers nationwide including Whole Foods Market, Sprouts, Fresh Market, Publix, Meijer, Target, Walmart, Kroger, Thrive Market, Wegmans and more. The company claims its rice cooked in bone broth product recorded double-digit growth in 2024, even as sales across the overall prepared rice category were flat during the same period.

“A Dozen Cousins fits right into our growth strategy for ready-to-eat meals in a pouch and will allow Verde Valle to further expand into the natural products segment,” said German Rosales, Jr., U.S. CEO of Verde Valle Foods, in a statement. “We are thrilled to have Ibraheem join our business; we can’t wait to work collaboratively and continue to bring delicious, natural products to consumers across the country.”