Blue Harvest Fisheries, a portfolio company of Bregal Partners, has acquired the scallop business of High Liner Foods. This transaction includes High Liner’s processing facility in New Bedford, MA. Publicly traded High Liner is one of the largest seafood companies in North America.
Blue Harvest Fisheries harvests, processes and sells MSC-certified (Marine Stewardship Council) Atlantic sea scallops and also sells and distributes other seafood products such as bluefin tuna and swordfish. The company owns a fleet of 15 scallop vessels and is headquartered in Naples, FL with operations in Newport News, VA; New Bedford, MA; and Fairhaven, MA (www.blueharvestfisheries.com).
Bregal Partners formed Blue Harvest Fisheries in April 2015 to acquire eight Virginia-based scallop vessels and related shore assets from the Peabody Corporation. Partnering with Bregal on Blue Harvest is Jeff Davis, the former CEO of America Seafoods International, Baader North America, and BlueAqua Seafoods.
The acquisition of High Liner’s scallop business strengthens Blue Harvest’s existing processing and distribution capabilities and raises the company annual revenues to just over $150 million. “High Liner’s expertise and distribution capabilities in the frozen scallop market are highly complementary to our existing capabilities in the fresh scallop market,” said Mr. Davis. “Through this acquisition we will grow our customer base, increase our portfolio of products, and build increased presence in the premium seafood marketplace.”
In August 2016, Blue Harvest entered the scallop processing and distribution business through the acquisition of New Bedford-based Hygrade Ocean Products (www.hygradeoceanproducts.com).
“We are pleased to support management’s vision and strategic direction to be a premier provider of sustainable seafood products,” said Scott Perekslis, Managing Partner and co-founder of Bregal Partners. “This acquisition speaks to the company’s strategy of creating a vertically-integrated seafood brand that is anchored in trust, quality, and sustainability.”
Bregal Partners invests from $25 million to $90 million of equity in companies operating in the branded consumer products, food, energy services, and healthcare sectors. Target investments typically have from $15 million to $75 million of EBITDA. The firm has $600 million of committed capital funded by a sixth-generation family foundation. Bregal Partners is based in New York (www.bregalpartners.com).
High Liner Foods (TSX: HLF) is headquartered in Lunenberg, Nova Scotia (www.highlinerfoods.com).
© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 9-15-16
