By Lynda Kiernan
Bringing vast experience, Mitchell Presser, a founding partner of leading food and agriculture investor Paine Schwartz Partners, has joined New York-based global law firm Morrison & Foerster as a partner in its M&A and Private Equity Investments + Buyouts practices, as well as as co-chair of the firm’s Global Corporate Department alongside Eric McCrath and Jackie Liu.
“Morrison & Foerster’s exceptional culture and collegiality were a large draw for me,” said Presser. “The opportunity to help lead a global network of 400 lawyers in the firm’s Corporate Department across 17 offices, an M&A group that has advised on transactions with a total value of roughly US$117 billion in 2019 alone, and a robust and growing private equity footprint, is very exciting.”
Presser, who earned his B.S. from New York University and his J.D. from Yale Law School, has 30 years of experience in private equity and M&A transactions across a wide range of asset classes including agriculture and food, financial services, industrials, insurance, sports and entertainment, energy, and retail.
He joins Morrison & Foerster from his role as a senior corporate partner for a leading international law firm where he advised on global transactions including M&As and leveraged buyouts. Prior to that, Presser was a founding partner of Paine Schwartz, a $1.2 billion leading sustainable food and agriculture chain investor.
As part of his practice that focuses on representing and advising private equity funds and corporations in high-profile M&A transactions, Presser’s representative transactions include multiple deals carried through by Paine Schwartz.
“It was clear that MoFo provided a unique opportunity for me to add value to a premier platform that had leading practices in forward-looking sectors, such as agriculture, life sciences and technology, where I have deep experience, and that my practice could be a catalyst to accelerate growth and leadership in these areas,” noted Presser.
Presser advised the firm on its acquisition of Wawona Packing Company – a Cutler, California-based supplier of high-quality stone fruit and a leading supplier in the organic sector of the category. Subsequently, Presser also advised Paine Schwartz last year through a transaction that saw Paine Schwartz (as an existing investor in Wawona) bring together Wawona with Gerawan Farming, a pioneer in the stone fruit industry, and Burchell Nursery to create the largest stone fruit producer in the U.S.
Other prominent deals Presser advised Paine Schwartz on include its 2015 acquisition of Spearhead International Limited, a diversified agricultural producer with acreage across Poland, the Czech Republic, the UK, Romania, and Slovakia growing a variety of crops including oilseeds, potatoes, sugar beet, vegetables, seed crops, milk, livestock, and other agricultural goods.
That same year Presser had a hand in Paine Schwartz’ successful acquisition of Suba Seeds. With locations in Italy, France, and the U.S., Suba is a leading producer, packer, and distributor of specialty vegetable and legume seeds, and is known as a top producer of coriander.
The following year Presser advised Paine Schwartz on its divestment of Icicle Seafoods to Cooke Seafood, and its fifth acquisition through Fund IV – FoodChain ID (formerly known as Global ID Corporation).
“Mitchell is one of the leading private equity lawyers with a demonstrated brand and global track record. Mitchell’s reputation in agriculture, sustainability, and life sciences sectors is unparalleled,” said Eric McCrath, co-chair with Presser of Morrison & Foerster’s Global Corporate Department.
“Our firm has been a pioneer in these areas and increasingly people and companies around the world are focusing on them. With Mitchell’s arrival we are poised to be the leading corporate advisor in these sectors for the next decade.”
– Lynda Kiernan is Editor with GAI Media and daily contributor to the GAI News and Agtech Intel platforms. If you would like to submit a contribution for consideration, please contact Ms. Kiernan at lkiernan@globalaginvesting.