September 21, 2021

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

The U.S. Buyout team of private equity investor Ardian has acquired a majority stake in Florida Food Products (FFP) from MidOcean Partners, setting the enterprise value of FFP in excess of $1 billion. 

“Ardian’s investment in FFP is a testament to the platform we have built with our talented team, industry-leading product portfolio, strong customer relationships, deep R&D pipeline, and ability to generate consistent growth,” said Jim Holdrieth, CEO, FFP.

Ardian, which is employee majority owned, is truly a global investment house, managing $114 billion in assets in Europe, the Americas, and Asia. With more than 780 employees, the company has 15 offices across three continents in Frankfurt, Jersey, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Zurich, New York, San Francisco, Santiago, Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo and Seoul, managing funds of more than 1,200 clients through the five pillars of Fund of Funds, Direct Funds, Infrastructure, Real Estate, and Private Debt.

Since expanding into the U.S. two years ago, Ardian’s Buyout Team operates out of seven offices in Europe and America, acquiring mid-and large-cap companies across Western Europe and North America, applying transformational and multicultural buy-and-build strategies that sees companies evolve into global leaders in their sector. In only two years, working within this mandate, Ardian’s Buyout Team has deployed more than $1.2 billion in equity in three platforms. 

Founded in 1954 in Eustis, Florida, FFP is the leading innovator, formulator, and producer of vegetable and fruit-based ingredients for healthy, natural, and clean label foods, from beverages, to savory items, meats, and sport nutrition products that are marketed on a global scale.

Manufactured at a multifunctional production facility, FFP’s products replace traditional synthetic ingredients with natural, plant-based alternatives that improve foods’ texture and flavor while also extending their shelf life. As the largest provider of clean label solutions for the protein sector, FFP controls a rapidly growing portfolio of natural ingredients with applications across every segment of the food and beverage industries.

“FFP plays a critical role in the development and formulations of clean label food products for today’s consumer,” said Thibault Basquin, head of Americas Investment, Ardian Buyout. “FFP’s pipeline of innovative natural ingredients will significantly expand the selection of natural products available to consumers in both the retail and food-service channels.”

New York-based MidOcean acquired FFP in 2018 from Kainos Capital and over the course of its ownership, MidOcean together with FFP management significantly grew the business through a series of organic growth initiatives and a strategic flavor acquisition. At the same time, significant investments were made in the company’s infrastructure and its product development capabilities saw major expansion. 

When MidOcean acquired FFP, Jonathan Marlow, managing director, MidOcean said, “We are very excited to partner with FFP, which is the market leader in the clean label cure market. Jim and his team have built an impressive business that has experienced strong growth. We have identified a number of opportunities to increase FFP’s presence across channels and markets fueled by organic investments, strategic initiatives and highly accretive acquisitions.”

This work had left FFP well-positioned to capture rapid growth in numerous adjacent business segments as it prepares to launch a new line of innovative natural ingredients. Moving forward, MidOcean (which is retaining an undisclosed stake in the company) will continue to partner with Ardian and FFP’s executive team, including company CEO Jim Holdrieth, to enhance its deep well of expertise in its core markets, to make entry into new adjacencies, and to pursue international expansion.

Basquin commented, “By combining Ardian’s global reach and sector experience with MidOcean’s deep knowledge of the space and proven ability to implement transformative strategies, Florida Food Products will accelerate its long-term strategic plan while offering its customers and consumers best-in-class products.”

“MidOcean’s continued ownership in FFP reflects their conviction in our future growth and ability to deliver industry-leading results,” added Holdrieth. “Our mission to improve the food we eat by using the real ingredients that nature offers us has never been so relevant.”

He continued, “While the FFP team is incredibly proud of our accomplishments to date, it is our belief that we are still in the initial stages of our journey to offer our customers and consumers nature’s finest ingredients for clean label and great tasting products, and we look forward to the next chapter with Ardian and MidOcean.”

– Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and  Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Group’s Oilseed & Grain News. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.