October 31, 2025

Please see below for a listing of what the North Point Food & Beverage Team has been tracking this week. We hope that you find the content insightful and a nice way to summarize the most noteworthy Food & Beverage events of the week.

Hope you have a happy Halloween!

Glen Clarke

Head of Food & Beverage

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Church Brothers acquires Mann Packing assets from Fresh Del Monte.

• Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., one of the world’s leading vertically integrated producers, marketers, and distributors of high-quality fresh and fresh-cut fruit and vegetables, and Church Brothers Farms, a family-owned, Salinas-based company known for its leadership in value-added vegetables and leafy greens, announced that they have entered into an agreement for the sale and transfer of key assets from Fresh Del Monte’s Mann Packing business.

Source: Mergermarket

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Keurig Dr Pepper nabs $7B from private equity ahead of JDE Peet’s acquisition.

• Keurig Dr Pepper has landed $7 billion in capital from private-equity firms to finance its $18 billion purchase of JDE Peet’s.

Source: Food Dive

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Hormel Foods sells majority stake in Justin’s nut butter.

• Hormel Foods is selling a majority stake in Justin’s, the popular nut spreads and confectionery brand, to a private investment firm for an undisclosed amount.

Source: Food Dive

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Brust Beverage Company sells majority stake to Clearstone Capital affiliate.

• Brust Beverage Company Ltd. ("Brust") jointly announce the completion, on October 27, 2025, of the Offeror's negotiated take-over bid (the "Offer") for 51% of Brust's common shares ("Shares").

Source: Mergermarket

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B&G Foods to sell Green Giant in Canada to Nortera Foods.

• B&G Foods agreed to divest its Green Giant and Le Sieur frozen & shelf-stable vegetable brands in Canada to Nortera Foods as part of a broader portfolio-rationalization and debt-reduction strategy.
• Transaction follows prior sales of U.S. shelf-stable Green Giant (to Seneca Foods) and Le Sueur (to McCall Farms) and B&G continues to evaluate divesting its U.S. frozen Green Giant business.
• Proceeds will be used for long-term debt repayment and reinvestment in core assets; Barclays and Deutsche Bank advised B&G Foods.

Source: Mergermarket

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Archer-Daniels-Midland’s peanut business carve-out advances to management presentations.

• Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM) is conducting management presentations for the sale of its peanut business, according to three sources familiar with the situation.

Source: Mergermarket

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CREO Capital Partners preps for Insignia International sale.

• CREO is preparing a 2026 sale process for Insignia International (formerly Flagship Food Group), a Hispanic & Southwestern branded food platform generating ~$400–$450mm revenue.
• William Blair is advising; expected buyer universe includes PE firms focused on Hispanic food and Latin American strategics seeking U.S. expansion.
• Portfolio includes 505 Southwestern, La Tortilla Factory, and Yucatan Guacamole; BlackRock invested in 2021 via its secondaries platform.

Source: Mergermarket

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Hain Celestial in second round of sale process for snack business.

• The Hain Celestial Group, a publicly listed food and personal care company, is in the second round of a sale process for its snack business, according to four sources familiar with the situation.

Source: Mergermarket

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Panos sale process advances to second round.

• Hammond, Kennedy, Whitney & Company’s sale (HKW) of its portfolio company Panos Brands, a New Jersey-based provider of branded consumer food, is in the second round, two sources familiar with the situation said.

Source: Mergermarket

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Ardian expects offers for Frulact valued above EUR 500m; Investindustrial, IK Partners among suitors - report (translated).

• Ardian is expecting offers for Frulact next week, the Portuguese producer of natural food ingredients valued at more than EUR 500m, El Confidencial reported, citing financial sources.

Source: Mergermarket

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Cotton Creek Capital invests in Ne-Mo’s Bakery.

• Ne-Mo’s Bakery, LLC (“Ne-Mo’s” or the “Company”), a leading brand for convenience stores and grocery retailers throughout the United States, is pleased to announce a strategic investment by Cotton Creek Capital (“Cotton Creek”) to accelerate growth with manufacturing capacity and product innovation.

Source: Mergermarket

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Kirin launches sale process for Four Roses bourbon brand, UBS advising – report.

• Kirin Holdings, a Japan-based drinks group, has launched a sale process for its Lawrenceburg, Kentucky-based Four Roses bourbon brand, Ft.com reported. 

Source: Mergermarket

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• Penobscot McCrum in advanced talks with potential buyer.
• Penobscot McCrum, a family-owned supplier of potato products, is in advanced sale discussions with an interested suitor, according to three sources familiar with the situation.

Source: Mergermarket

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Impulse purchases, prepared foods fuel C-store growth.

• Prepared food and impulse items are major growth drivers in convenience store (c-store) channels.
• In 2024, foodservice in U.S. convenience stores accounted for ~27.7% of in-store sales and 38.6% of gross margin.
• The trend signals that snacking/meal replacement and fresh offerings are becoming key differentiators in non-traditional retail channels.

Source: Meat + Poultry

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Food companies are under pressure to innovate faster than ever before.

• Rising at-home consumption and social media trends are shifting innovation from restaurants to grocery aisles, accelerating the pace of CPG innovation.
• Social platforms shorten trend cycles to 6–8 months, forcing brands to balance rapid trend-chasing vs. “platform innovation” and bigger, longer-term bets (e.g., Campbell’s shifting Goldfish strategy).
• With ~30,000 new products launched annually and ~95% failing, companies like Hain Celestial are mixing large strategic innovations with smaller bets to manage risk and sustain growth.

Source: Food Dive

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Danone can’t make enough high-protein yogurt to meet US demand.

• Danone is facing U.S. manufacturing capacity constraints amid surging demand for high-protein yogurts driven by health trends and GLP-1 adoption, forcing the company to delay broader innovation.
• High-protein products (incl. Oikos shakes) are “flying off shelves,” with demand exceeding capacity; half of Danone’s U.S. yogurt portfolio is Greek yogurt, most of which is high-protein.
• Danone is expanding U.S. capacity (including upgrades to its Minster, OH plant), but supply limitations contributed to slower North America growth in 3Q25 (1.5% LFL vs. 4.8% company-wide).

Source: Food Dive

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Chomps bites into surging meat stick demand with new Nebraska plant.

• Chomps is building a 160k-sq-ft Nebraska facility (opening 2Q27) to boost capacity by ~15% as demand for its protein-focused snacks outpaces supply (previously fulfilling only ~85% of orders; now ~95%).
• Sales have grown from ~$50M in 2019 to nearly ~$1B in 2025, with 161% YoY growth — far exceeding the broader meat-stick category (+16.1%); growth has forced the company to delay innovation and new retail expansions.
• New capacity will support innovation, broader retail distribution, national marketing, and improved service levels; expansion follows recent U.S. manufacturing builds by Jack Link’s and Archer as protein snacking surges.

Source: Food Dive

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By the numbers: The enduring appeal of bacon.

• The U.S. bacon market was valued at $15.2B in 2024 and is expected to grow to $19.8B by 2032 (2.8% CAGR).
• Retail bacon sales grew 3.2% YoY (52 wks ending Aug '25), driven by inflation + demand; average price reached $6.25/lb, with 38% of bacon dollars sold on promotion.
• Innovation and merchandising continue to fuel category momentum — including premium flavors, no-sugar/Keto/Paleo SKUs, and cross-merchandising near eggs and breakfast items.

Source: Mergermarket

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Food giants may lean more on lawsuits as private label encroaches on their turf.

• National brands like J.M. Smucker and Mondelēz are increasingly suing retailers such as Trader Joe’s and Aldi over alleged copycat private-label products and packaging as private label gains share (forecast to exceed 20% of food & grocery sales in 2025).
• Litigation risk cuts both ways: failure by brands to challenge look-alikes could weaken IP enforcement, while losing lawsuits could embolden retailers and accelerate private-label imitation.
• Private label growth driven by improved quality, value positioning, and consumer trade-down behavior amid inflation; 2024 private-label sales reached a record $271B (+3.9% YoY vs. +1% for national brands).

Source: Food Dive

JUST FOR FUN

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How rising chocolate prices are changing Halloween candy options – Food Dive

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