Investment

Presence Marketing, a natural products brokerage firm that grew out of its Chicagoland founding in 1990 to become the largest independent sales and marketing organization in its channel, has been bought by PLTFRM, a multi-channel sales, marketing, and investment company.

Bone broth innovator Kettle & Fire secured a $43 million secondary buyout led by Colter Ventures, the company announced today, marking the start of a new strategic partnership to help fuel the brand’s next stage of growth.

Back to Nature has reconstructed the basics of its operations while rebuilding its team and refining its approach to the better-for-you snack category two years after B&G Foods sold it to Barilla without a single team member.

The CPG Week team discusses the launch of a new soda line from sparkling water maker Spindrift just a month after its sale to a private equity group. Then, the group digs into the details of Celsius Holdings’ $1.8 billion acquisition of competitor Alani Nu and examines how the deal could impact distribution in the energy drink category as well as what the sale spells for prior owner (and PRIME maker) Congo Brands.

Lakeview Farms and its newly-acquired noosa brand have merged to form new entity Novus Foods. The move comes less than three months after CapVest Partners-owned Lakeview announced its plans to acquire noosa from Campbell’s.

Amidst accelerated growth, chef-crafted veggie burger brand Actual Veggies is making new hires and ramping up marketing efforts with the support of a $7 million investment round led by Relentless Consumer Partners, announced today.

Private equity firm Ahimsa Companies is growing its portfolio of plant-based food brands. The company announced on Friday it has acquired frozen pizza and wings purveyor Blackbird Foods.

Food technology company Oobli has aligned with ingredient supplier Ingredion in a deal that will help scale its operations and client base and support new product development.

The year is barely underway, and already several significant deals struck in the packaged food sector provide reason for optimism after a tough period on the financing front. While some industry watchers anticipate the pace of transactions to accelerate, others expect strategic acquirers and investors to remain prudent and disciplined. “We see investors are being… Read more »

Olyra turned its discontinuation from Publix into an insight engine, enabling the brand to rechart growth in the natural channel while better aligning its retail aspirations.