Nutrition Capital Network summarizes mergers & acquisitions and investments in the nutrition, natural product, health & wellness, and green product sectors.

• NCN News for May 6, 2013

Online Grocer RelayFoods.com Raises $8.25 Million
New Fund to Focus on Emerging Beverage Brands
Veteran Probiotics Manufacturer UAS Acquired
Specialty Coffee Maintains Investment Appeal With Philz Acquisition
Hain Forms Children’s Food Division With Acquisition of Ella’s
Frutarom Expands in Africa
Jawbone Gets Into Wearable Body Monitors
Dominex Acquired by Westin Foods to Expand Natural Foods Division
Grupo Herdez Buys Nutrisa Healthy Food Chain
Enaltus Acquires ScarAway Brand
North Castle Partners Invests in Sustainable Bottle Maker
Natrol Secures $65 Million Loan

Online Grocer RelayFoods.com Raises $8.25 Million
RelayFoods.com (Charlottesville, Va.), an online grocer in the Mid-Atlantic region, has raised $8.25 million for expansion and key operational improvements, bringing total capital raised to a reported $14.25 million. A portfolio company of Battery Ventures and TomorrowVentures, RelayFoods features sustainable and artisanal foods from local producers, in addition to national grocery brands. Capital will be used to expand geographically, launch a dedicated mobile platform, and make website improvements focused on sharing detailed product sourcing data and nutritional data with consumers.  In 2013, U.S. online sales of food and beverages will exceed $15.4 billion, according to Forrester Research. Peapod and FreshDirect, online leaders in fresh food delivery, both have revenues estimated to exceed $400 million, while Amazon and Walmart are continuing to experiment with online delivery models. Meanwhile, regional online enterprises have emerged to offer fresh/organic/local food, including Greenling, Door to Door Organics, Suburban Organics, Urban Organic, Boxed Greens, Spud, Mile High Organics, Good Eggs, and Farmigo. “The provision of digital experiences that link to changing food culture and its focus on fresh ingredients and new taste experiences is a key stepping stone in navigating the online grocery opportunity,” noted The Hartman Group in a white paper on opportunities in online grocery.

New Fund to Focus on Emerging Beverage Brands
First Beverage Ventures, the private equity arm of financial services firm First Beverage Group, has launched a private equity fund to invest in small and emerging beverage brands. The fund's limited partners include The Coca-Cola Company's Venturing and Emerging Brands (VEB) group, beverage distributor David Kahn, and high-net-worth individuals and family offices. First Beverage plans to invest in emerging beverage companies and services within the next two to three years, with opportunities for follow-on investments. VEB is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Veteran Probiotics Manufacturer UAS Acquired
Lakeview Equity Partners LLC has acquired probiotics manufacturer UAS Laboratories (Edina, Minn.). An early entrant in the U.S. probiotics segment, UAS was founded by Dr. S.K. Dash in 1979 and makes probiotics with the documented “super strain” Lactobacillus acidophilus DDS-1, offering branded products, raw materials, private labeling and custom manufacturing. Lakeview executives said the acquisition will be used to accelerate R&D. Kevin Mehring, previously director of sales for dietary supplements at DuPont Nutrition & Health, formerly Danisco, will be UAS Labs’ new president; Greg Leyer, also from DuPont, will serve as chief science officer. Both will work with S.K. Dash to develop and manufacture probiotics. Nutrition Business Journal forecast that consumer supplement sales of probiotics would cross the $1 billion mark by the end of 2013.  A 2013 report by MarketsandMarkets.com estimated the global probiotic products market at $24.23 billion in 2011, with more than 500 probiotic food and beverage products introduced in the past decade.

Specialty Coffee Maintains Investment Appeal With Philz Acquisition
Philz Coffee (San Francisco), a specialty coffee retailer with 13 locations in the Bay Area, has entered into a minority growth equity investment partnership with Summit Partners. Details were not released, but TechCrunch estimated the investment in the $15-$25 million range. Philz offers handcrafted drip coffee made one cup at a time from exclusive coffee blends crafted by founder Phil Jaber; it doesn’t sell espresso, lattes or cappuccinos. The first Philz cafe opened in 2003. Following the investment, Phil and his son, CEO Jacob Jaber, will retain majority control of the company. The transaction follows a Fall 2012 investment in the specialty coffee company Blue Bottle Coffee (Oakland, Calif.), which raised $20 million in a round led by True Ventures. In recent news, 80 Caribou Coffee stores have been slated for closure and another 88 for conversion into Peet's by owner Joh. A. Benckiser (JAB). In 2012, JAB acquired Peet's Coffee for approximately $1 billion and the publicly traded Caribou Coffee chain for $340 million.

Hain Forms Children’s Food Division With Acquisition of Ella’s
The Hain Celestial Group Inc. (Lake Success, N.Y.), a leading natural and organic products company, has announced the acquisition of Ella's Kitchen Group Ltd. (Montclair, N.J.) and formed a Global Infant, Toddler & Kids Division under Hain Celestial US. Ella's Kitchen is a manufacturer and distributor of premium organic baby food in flexible pouches. Ella's Kitchen offers 80 branded organic baby food products principally in the United Kingdom, the United States and Scandinavia. The seven-year-old company generated approximately $70 million in sales in calendar year 2012. Paul Lindley, founder of Ella's Kitchen, will become CEO of the new division at Hain Celestial US with responsibility for Hain Celestial's Earth's Best brand, in addition to Ella's Kitchen. Hain Celestial reported global net sales of $1.4 billion in FY 2012 from continuing operations, up 24.3% compared to FY2011, led by grocery products (68%), snacks (15%), tea (8%) and personal care (8%).
 
Frutarom Expands in Africa
Frutarom Industries Ltd. (Haifa, Israel), a global flavor and fine ingredients manufacturer, has acquired JannDeRee (Pty) Ltd. of South Africa for $5.2 million. JannDeRee develops, manufactures, and markets savory flavors, generating revenues of approximately $5 million in 2012. The company’s R&D, production and marketing site in Johannesburg is adjacent to Frutarom's South African site, and it has a wide customer base in South Africa and other countries in the sub-Saharan region such as Malawi, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. "We will continue to invest in the fast growing regions of Asia, Central and South America, Central and Eastern Europe and Africa, following a market share in emerging markets which has grown from 27% in 2010 to 36% in 2012," said Frutarom President and CEO Ori Yehudai. Frutarom’s 2011 revenues were $518.4 million, up 15%. Frutarom completed eight acquisitions in 2011 and announced three in 2012.

Jawbone Gets Into Wearable Body Monitors
Jawbone (San Francisco, Calif.), the maker of Bluetooth headsets and other wearable audio technology, is acquiring BodyMedia (Pittsburgh, Pa.), a developer of wearable body monitors that collect physiological data. "There's an enormous appetite for personal data and self-discovery among consumers that will only continue to grow," said Hosain Rahman, Jawbone CEO and founder. "Together, BodyMedia and Jawbone have almost three decades worth of deep tech, science and intellectual property around sophisticated sensors on the body, and nearly 300 issued and pending patents around wearable technology. We look forward to pushing new boundaries, creating new markets, and showing people what's truly possible with wearable computing." BodyMedia employees will join Jawbone's existing team.

Dominex Acquired by Westin Foods to Expand Natural Foods Division
Westin Foods (Omaha, Neb.) has expanded its Health and Wellness division by acquiring a majority interest in Dominex LC (St. Augustine, Fla.) to form Dominex Natural Foods. Dominex has been a leader in eggplant food products for the retail, foodservice, club and ingredient channels for 25 years, offering natural, vegetarian frozen items like eggplant cutlets, burgers, meatballs and fries. Westin generates sales of more than $155 million from specialty food items like bacon, olives and berries. The company formed Westin Health and Wellness in 2009 to appeal to natural grocery channels, leading with its Superberries brand of Aroniaberry based food products. John G. McGarvey, president of Dominex, will become president of Dominex Natural Foods.

Grupo Herdez Buys Nutrisa Healthy Food Chain
Mexican canned foods company Grupo Herdez is expected to pay the equivalent of $245 million to buy Nutrisa (Mexico City), a natural frozen snacks and supplement chain. Nutrisa offers natural beverages, soy-based shake mixes, sports nutrition, dietary supplements, healthy snacks, frozen yogurt and natural personal care items, reporting sales of approximately $94 million in 2012, up 2.9% for the year. Nutrisa was founded in 1979 with the mission of improving health for millions of Mexicans, based on the benefits of natural foods.

Enaltus Acquires ScarAway Brand
Enaltus LLC (Suwannee, Ga.), a dermatological products company focused on scar management and specialty skincare, has acquired the assets of Mitchell-Vance Laboratories, dba ScarAway (Guilford, Conn.). Founded in 2008, ScarAway is a line of OTC topical silicone scar treatments sold to physicians and through more than 20,000 retail stores nationwide. ScarAway consists of 100% silicone sheets and serum that can help flatten, soften, smooth, fade or improve the size and appearance of scars. A portfolio company of HealthEdge Investment Fund LP, Enaltus also owns Kelo-cote, a patented, fast drying silicone gel and spray, Belli, a physician-formulated skincare line for infants and pre- and post-natal women, and Arnika Forte supplements, a combination of arnica montana and bromelain designed to speed healing. 

North Castle Partners Invests in Sustainable Bottle Maker
North Castle Partners and its co-investors have completed an investment in Ignite USA, LLC (Greenwich, Conn.), a developer and marketer of reusable, environmentally friendly thermal mugs and hydration bottles. Terms of the investment, which is being made in partnership with CEO Sami El-Saden, were not disclosed. Ignite sells its Contigo and Avex brands in over 50 countries across club, mass, sporting goods, specialty and direct-to-consumer channels and through strategic partnerships. "We intend to support the acceleration of Ignite's growth by leveraging our experience with innovation-driven product businesses, such as Cascade Sports and Octane Fitness, as well as companies with mass market distribution and channel expansion experience, including Atkins Nutritional, Enzymatic Therapy, Flatout Flatbread, Leiner Health Products, and Avalon Natural Brands,” said Alison Minter, a North Castle managing director.

Natrol Secures $65 Million Loan
Natrol Inc. (Chatsworth, Calif.) has arranged new senior secured credit facilities consisting of a $65 million term loan and a $10 million revolving credit facility, according to Imperial Capital LLC, which acted as Natrol's exclusive financial advisor. Proceeds were used to repay debt, finance the expansion of the company’s manufacturing facility and for general corporate purposes. Established in 1980, Natrol manufactures and distributes specialty nutritional supplements, sports nutrition, functional herbal teas and other dietary supplements under its flagship Natrol brand and complementary brands including MRI, Prolab, Laci Le Beau, Promensil, NuHair and Shenmin. The company also manufactures private label supplements through its Essentially Pure Ingredients subsidiary. Natrol is a subsidiary of Plethico Pharmaceuticals Limited (Mumbai, India), a public healthcare and pharmaceutical company which acquired Natrol in 2007 for about $81 million.


Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for April 10, 2013

Japanese Giant Buys Mary’s Gone Crackers
Sherbrooke Capital Invests in Halfpops
DuPont Qualicon Joins DuPont Nutrition & Health
Omega Protein Buys Whey Protein Manufacturer
Study Finds Rebates Encourage Healthier Choices
New Report Finds DIY Diets on the Rise
Online Diabetes Prevention Attracts $4.7 Million Investment
Verizon Grant to Prevent Chronic Disease in Elderly
Fizzy Lizzy Acquired by White Rock Beverages
Nautic Sells Big Train Beverage Concentrates To Kerry

Japanese Giant Buys Mary’s Gone Crackers
Mary’s Gone Crackers (Gridley, Calif.), a maker of organic, vegan and gluten-free foods, has announced that Kameda USA Inc. (Torrance, Calif.), a subsidiary of Kameda Seika Co. Ltd., has acquired 77.8% of the company. Co-founder and Chairman Mary Waldner and Co-founder and CEO Dale Rodrigues will remain in their current roles. The company was founded in 2004 after Waldner learned she suffered from celiac disease. The brand offers seed crackers, pretzels, and cookies that are gluten-free and organic and contain no trans-fats or dairy ingredients. “We’re thrilled to join forces with the Kameda Seika family and feel privileged that the team recognizes Mary’s Gone Crackers as a brand it believes has significant potential for continued expansion in the U.S. and abroad,” said Waldner. Kameda Seika has around a 30% share of the $3.5 billion rice cracker market in Japan.

Sherbrooke Capital Invests in Halfpops
Sherbrooke Capital has made an investment in Halfpops Inc. (Woodinville, Wash.), a manufacturer and marketer of an innovative, partially popped popcorn snack. Founder and CEO Mike Fitzgerald launched the product 18 months ago and is selling Halfpops in natural and specialty grocery stores in the Pacific Northwest. "We are very excited about our investment in Halfpops," said John Giannuzzi, managing general partner of Sherbrooke Capital. "We believe that the Halfpops products and brand are unique in a new and emerging snack category. Mike and his team have built a disruptive strategy we are very enthusiastic about." Sherbrooke investments include Food Should Taste Good, Angie’s Kettle Corn, Ciao Bella Gelato, Immaculate Baking, Oregon Chai, Izze, Boathouse Sports and Farmigo. Sherbrooke has been an NCN Cornerstone Investor since NCN’s inaugural investor meeting in 2007.

DuPont Qualicon Joins DuPont Nutrition & Health
DuPont has combined three of its food-related units (Danisco, Solae and Qualicon) into one business, DuPont Nutrition & Health. The newly organized business is dedicated to premier ingredients and advanced diagnostics for safer, healthier food. Qualicon’s BAX System, RiboPrinter System and other products have been integrated as the molecular diagnostics product line of DuPont Nutrition & Health. These diagnostic systems, in combination with DuPont Danisco protective ingredients (antimicrobials, antioxidants and cultures), comprise the DuPont Nutrition & Health food protection portfolio. Dupont acquired Solae, a maker of soy protein ingredients, in 2012 following the 2011 purchase of enzyme and specialty ingredients company Danisco A/S in a deal worth more than $6 billion.

Omega Protein Buys Whey Protein Manufacturer
Omega Protein Corporation (Houston), a publicly traded nutritional ingredient company and a vertically integrated producer of omega-3 fish oil and specialty fishmeal products, has acquired Wisconsin Specialty Protein (Madison, Wis.), a manufacturer of specialty whey protein products. Founded by Tera Johnson, Wisconsin Specialty Protein produces bulk whey and the branded Tera’s Whey, a concentrated organic cow and goat whey protein powder that comes in a variety of flavors and is free of growth hormones. "Whey protein is a great complement to our existing line of value-added ingredients…. This acquisition positions Omega Protein to further leverage our human nutrition business through greater internal innovation, expanded distribution channels and additional strategic capital investment opportunities," said President and CEO of Omega Protein Bret Scholtes. The Isthmus newspaper reported in June 2010 that Johnson was anticipating bulk sales of  $6 million and a half million in sales of Tera’s Whey for that year.

Study Finds Rebates Encourage Healthier Choices
A new study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that rebates on healthy food purchases cause people to put healthier food in their grocery carts. Led by the RAND Corporation, the analysis examined the purchases of more than 170,000 South African households, of which 60% participated in Discovery Vitality's HealthyFood program and were eligible for a cash-back rebate of up to 25% for healthy food purchases. According to the research, a rebate of 25% increased the ratio of healthy to total food purchased by 9.3%. Discovery Holdings operates in the healthcare and life insurance markets in South Africa, U.K. and China, and Vitality is Discovery's wellness program.

New Report Finds DIY Diets on the Rise
Of the 108 million American dieters that make an average of four to five dieting attempts per year, approximately 83% favor do-it-yourself weight loss programs accessed from home (online or by phone), diet books, or celebrity diet plans. "The U.S. Weight Loss & Diet Control Market," a new report by MarketData Enterprises Inc. (Tampa, Fla.), indicates that this is the highest historical share for those programs in over 20 years. Weight Watchers still dominates the global weight loss market, followed by Herbalife; Jenny Craig and NutriSystem trail in third and fourth places. Demographically speaking, U.S. dieters are heavier than ever, the report found: “A combination of increased stress and a shift to rising consumption of comfort food and cheaper fast food resulted in significant weight gains.”

Online Diabetes Prevention Attracts $4.7 Million Investment
Omada Health (San Francisco), a Silicon Valley startup incubated at the accelerator Rock Health, has raised $4.7 million in a series A round led by U.S. Venture Partners, with Vertical Group, Founder Collective, NEA, TriplePoint Capital, Kapor Capital and angel investors participating. Omada will use funds to market Prevent, its online diabetes prevention program, which it launched in December 2012. According to Omada, Prevent is an online version of the NIH-sponsored Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), which showed a comprehensive behavioral weight loss program can help prevent diabetes more effectively than medication. Prevent’s 16-week online program uses an interactive web-based curriculum, personalized coaching, social support, and digital tracking tools to motivate healthy behaviors. Omada Health said its 230-person pilot study resulted in an average weight loss of 13.7 pounds (6.4 percent) after 16 weeks, which research indicates can reduce the risk of developing diabetes. “We believe that the sweet spot for digital health technology is in supporting individuals at the brink of chronic disease and in the early progression of chronic disease,” states Omada on its website.

Verizon Grant to Prevent Chronic Disease in Elderly
Seniors will learn how to stay healthy and prevent chronic disease through a program offered by Self-Help for the Elderly (San Francisco), supported by a $50,000 grant from the Verizon Foundation. The six-week program will serve 20 seniors who will learn physical exercises and techniques to deal with problems such as fatigue and depression. Technology integration will include heart monitoring apps on mobile devices and tracking of vital signs using an electronic medical records database. Each senior will get a pedometer to record the daily number of steps taken. "Technology-enabled self-management programs will improve long-term health outcomes of seniors, help lower healthcare costs, and improve seniors' confidence to maintain active and fulfilling lives," said Gene Eng, Verizon’s vice-president of external affairs.

Fizzy Lizzy Acquired by White Rock Beverages
White Rock Beverages (Whitestone, N.Y.) has acquired Fizzy Lizzy (Jersey City, N.J.), a maker of natural sparkling juices. Founded in 1871, the family-owned White Rock started out as a bottler of spring water and by the 1890s had become a top selling sparking table water and mixer. Fizzy Lizzy launched in 2000. Its drinks contain approximately 60% unfiltered fruit juice and 40% carbonated water with no added sugars or corn syrup. Founded by Liz Morrill, Fizzy Lizzy distributes to cafes and specialty and natural foods retailers.

Nautic Sells Big Train Beverage Concentrates To Kerry
Nautic Partners LLC has sold Big Train Inc. (Lake Forest, Calif.) to Kerry Group plc (Tralee, Ireland). Terms were not disclosed. Big Train makes liquid and powdered beverage concentrates for blended ice coffee, fruit smoothies, chai tea, cocoa drinks and syrups. The company distributes through independent coffeehouses, large retail chains, and international distributors. Coffeehouses sell the company’s product under the Big Train brand and under private label. The sale was Nautic’s fourth liquidity event since November 2012; it recently sold Agilex Flavors & Fragrances to MidOcean Partners. Kerry Group is a global food ingredients and flavors company with 2012 revenues of €5.8 billion.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for March 14, 2013

Cargill and Evolva to Develop and Commercialize Stevia Products
SJF Ventures Invests in Food Processing Technology
Chia\Vie Inks Strategic Relationship
WellPoint Leads $11 Million Round for Linkwell Health
Botanical Labs Acquired by Schwabe
SPINS Acquires Digital Receipts Platform
UFC Acquires Martial Arts Fitness Franchise
Blue Apron Raises $3 Million
Hair Care Company Closes $30 Million Financing

Cargill and Evolva to Develop and Commercialize Stevia Products

SJF Ventures Invests in Food Processing Technology
SJF Ventures has participated in a $6 million Series C financing for Aseptia (Troy, N.C.), an aseptic food processing technology company, alongside angel investors and management. Aseptia’s patented technology enables the production of shelf-stable food products that maintain the flavors and nutrients of fresh food without preservatives or refrigeration; the process also saves energy, packaging material, and distribution costs. Aseptia opened a food manufacturing facility in August 2012 under its wholly owned subsidiary Wright Foods, which produces a range of premium foods, including fruit sauces, tomato products, vegetables, soups and beverages. “Aseptia is the cutting edge of sustainable food processing,” said David Griest, managing director at SJF Ventures. “Their technology has the potential to replace most every canned product with the equivalent of fresh foods and in a superior packaging form.”

Chia\Vie Inks Strategic Relationship
L.A. Libations (Sierra Madre, Calif.), an entrepreneurial beverage company that identifies brands in emerging categories, has entered into a strategic relationship with the chia smoothie company ChiaVie (Monterey, Calif.). Launched by Bare Nutrition LLC in 2011, ChiaVie offers a line of ground chia seed and fruit blend smoothies. Chia seed is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, fiber and protein. By using ground rather than whole chia seed, ChiaVie says its beverages offer higher nutritional value and superior texture. Founded by Mark and Camille Reith, Chia/Vie was a presenting company at NCN’s Fall 2012 investor meeting in San Francisco. L.A. Libations is aligned with The Coca-Cola Company's Venturing & Emerging Brands (VEB) division to incubate emerging beverage categories. It works with VEB on Illy Issimo Coffee, Zico Coconut Water, and Cascal Natural Soda. VEB is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

WellPoint Leads $11 Million Round for Linkwell Health
Linkwell Health (Needham, Mass.), a company that partners with health plans to motivate and reward members who choose healthy options, has raised $11 million in Series C funding led by WellPoint Inc. (Indianapolis, Ind.), a publicly traded health benefits company with net 2012 income of approximately $2.7 billion. Existing investors Spark Capital and HLM Venture Partners also participated. Linkwell Health’s distribution platform serves 22 major health plans, including Humana, Health Net, and WellPoint. Members receive content through health plan websites, email, mobile apps and direct mail. They also get coupons for better-for-you products. “This combination of useful content with high-value coupons is empowering consumers to make better health decisions, while saving them time and money,” Linkwell stated. “Meanwhile, the better-for-you brands offering these coupons – such as Kellogg's, Campbell's, Unilever and Proctor & Gamble – are achieving higher trial and repeat purchase habits than competitive media in the marketplace.” 

Botanical Labs Acquired by Schwabe
Botanical Laboratories (Ferndale, Wash.), a producer of liquid supplements under the Wellesse brand, has been acquired by Schwabe North America (Green Bay, Wis.), owner of the Nature’s Way, Enzymatic Therapy, and Integrative Therapeutics brands. Parent company Dr. Willmar Schwabe Pharmaceuticals (Karlsruhe, Germany) was founded in 1866 and is a manufacturer of herbal medicines, with six companies in Germany and more than 20 subsidiaries and joint ventures around the world. Botanical Laboratories was founded over 25 years ago in the Pacific Northwest. 6Pacific Group provided sell-side financial advisory services to Botanical Laboratories. Botanical Laboratories was a presenting company at NCN IV in New York in April 2009 and presented itself as a strategic acquisition at NCN IX in Los Angeles in November 2011.

SPINS Acquires Digital Receipts Platform
SPINS (Schaumburg, Ill.), a provider of market data and brand insights for the natural, organic and specialty products industry, has acquired a majority interest in Third Solutions Inc. (Miami Beach, Fla.), the developer and owner of MyReceipts. A SPINS subsidiary will be created called Third Solutions LLC, focused on the digital receipt platform. Founder and CEO Birame Sock will remain president and chief technology officer of Third Solutions. MyReceipts aggregates receipts from participating merchants and presents them to consumers via the MyReceipts online and mobile applications, eliminating the need for paper receipts. According to SPINS, the service offers its retail partners more personalized and effective communication with customers, among other benefits, while manufacturers will be able to access real time information on consumer behavior, in addition to sending coupons directly to consumers through the MyReceipts website.

UFC Acquires Martial Arts Fitness Franchise
LA Boxing (Santa Ana, Calif.), a boxing, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts fitness franchise with nearly 81 locations nationwide and 50 in development, has been acquired by UFC GYM, the first major brand extension of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. UFC is a martial arts organization owned and operated by Zuffa LLC  (Las Vegas, Nev.) that produces more than 30 live events annually and is a leading pay-per-view event provider. Founded in partnership with New Evolution Ventures LLC, UFC GYM has five full-service facilities in California and Hawaii averaging 35,000 square feet. The boutique LA Boxing facilities, which average 5,000 square feet, will be transitioned into the UFC GYM format and will adopt UFC’s Train Different philosophy, which combines traditional fitness with mixed martial arts.

Blue Apron Raises $3 Million
The online food subscription service Blue Apron (Brooklyn, N.Y.) has raised a $3 million Series A financing from First Round Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Dave Tisch and others. Blue Apron offers customers once-a-week delivery of fresh, pre-portioned ingredients and recipes for three healthy meals of 500-700 calories per serving. The company says it currently delivers to most of the eastern half of the United States, offering both meat and vegetarian programs. It also sources as much as possible from local suppliers with sustainable practices. The company is named after the French tradition for young chefs to wear a Blue Apron while they master the art of cooking. “We named our company Blue Apron to remind us that amateur and expert chefs alike can always learn something new,” the company said.

Hair Care Company Closes $30 Million Financing

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified. 

• NCN News for February 13, 2013

Plum Organics Acquires Plum UK
Veggie Grill Raises $20 Million
TSG Invests in My Fit Foods
Post Foods Buys Veteran Healthy Cereal Brands
FarmLogs Closes $1 Million Seed Round
Inergetics Buys Two Diet Brands
FRS Buys Contract Manufacturer Nutravail
AquaLiv Acquires Verity Farms
In-Shape Partners with Two Investment Groups
IGNIA Fund Backs Nutrition Provider in Mexico
SunOpta Acquires Bulgarian Supplier of Organic Sunflower Ingredients
OpenTable Folds in Foodspotting App
NSF International Strengthens Latin American Presence
MusclePharm Nets $3.5 Million Offering
KitoZyme Issues New Shares
The Chia Company Receives Growth Investment

Plum Organics Acquires Plum UK
Plum Organics (Emeryville, Calif.), an organic nutrition company for children, has acquired the coincidentally named Plum UK (London), a leader in the organic baby food category in the United Kingdom. The combined company will have retail sales in excess of $120 million and a product portfolio of over 150 products with distribution in more than 13,000 stores internationally. Plum UK was founded in 2006 by Savoy-trained Chef Susie Willis to offer “real food for babies, not just baby food.” Core growth for its main products is running at about 25%, according to a recent interview in Just-Food.com. Plum Organics makes food and snacks for babies, toddlers and young children and was recently ranked #63 on the 2012 Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies, with 2011 revenues of $38 million. Plum Organics said it drove over 50% of U.S. baby food category growth last year. “Like Plum Organics, Plum UK is a 'David versus Goliath' brand filled with passionate people who are inspired to use the power of business to make a difference in the world,” said Neil Grimmer, CEO and co-founder of Plum Organics.
 
Veggie Grill Raises $20 Million
Veggie Grill (Santa Monica, Calif.) has completed a $20 million common stock funding from current shareholders and new investors. It was the fourth round of equity funding for the vegetarian restaurant chain, which has 16 locations on the West Coast. Veggie Grill has enjoyed 16% same-store sales growth and doubled its locations in the most recent year, and is on track to double its store count again within the next 18 months, the company said. A substantial part of the capital raised came from Brentwood Associates which, following a prior investment, has secured a substantial minority position in the company as the largest single shareholder. Brentwood Partner Bill Barnum and Managing Director Rahul Aggarwal will join the company’s board of directors. Other healthy food restaurant chains to gain momentum on the West Coast include the salad chain Chop’t, the Lyfe Kitchen franchise, True Food Kitchen, Real Food Daily, Native Foods Cafe, and Cafe Gratitude.

TSG Invests in Healthy Food Chain
TSG Consumer Partners LLC has made a minority equity investment in My Fit Foods LLC (Houston), a chain of retail outlets providing healthy, pre-portioned meals and snacks. My Fit Foods, which operates over 60 locations nationally, was founded in 2006 in the kitchen of personal trainer Mario Mendias, who started cooking healthy meals for his busy clients. In 2007, Mendias partnered with restaurant pioneer Anthony Milton. The menu focuses on lean protein, low glycemic carbohydrates and heart healthy fats; over 90% of meals are gluten-free. TSG’s investment will help fund the company’s expansion into new markets, enhance its brand and promote development. Terms were not disclosed. TSG’s past and present portfolio companies include Vitaminwater, Smart Balance, PopChips, Muscle Milk, Cytosport, Neuro, Dogswell, and Planet Fitness.

Post Foods Buys Veteran Healthy Cereal Brands
Attune Foods (San Francisco), owner of the Erewhon, Uncle Sam, New Morning, and Skinner’s cereal brands, has been acquired by Post Foods for an undisclosed sum. Attune generated $15 million in 2011 from sales of its natural, organic, gluten-free and GMO-free products, according to the St Louis Business Journal. The Uncle Sam brand dates back to 1908, and Skinner’s Raisin Bran to 1926. Attune will continue to operate independently with the same team, the company said on its website: “Our independent spirit and deep-rooted commitment to the natural foods industry is what attracted Post.” Post brands include Honey Bunches of Oats, Pebbles, Post Raisin Bran and Grape-Nuts. Post had fiscal 2012 net sales of  $960 million. Attune was an NCN presenting company in 2008.

FarmLogs Closes $1 Million Seed Round
FarmLogs (Ann Arbor, Mich.), a startup farm management software company, has closed a $1 million seed round co-led by Huron River Ventures and Hyde Park Venture Partners. The funding allows FarmLogs to expand its team and develop mobile applications in time for the 2013 planting season. Launched a year ago, FarmLogs replaces paper record keeping with software accessible via smartphone or web browser that growers can use to plan, manage and analyze their farms’ operations in order to increase yield and profitability. “FarmLogs has enormous growth potential, and the team is well positioned to transform the farming industry,” said Tim Streit, managing director of Huron River Ventures. FarmLogs was founded in 2011 by Jesse Vollmar and Brad Koch.

Inergetics Buys Two Diet Brands
Inergetics Inc. (Paramus, N.J.) has acquired two consumer weight management brands—
Bikini Ready and SlimTrim—from Whole Products Group (Highlands, N.J.). A comprehensive launch of both brands into mass market retailers is planned for the first quarter of 2013. Inergetics develops and markets nutritional formulas for the clinical nutrition, long-term care, and sports nutrition markets. Its two flagship brands are Resurgex and Surgex.

FRS Buys Contract Manufacturer Nutravail
The FRS Company (San Mateo, Calif.) has announced the acquisition of contract manufacturer Nutravail (Chantilly, Va.). FRS makes products under the Healthy Performance name, including ready-to-drink beverages, chews, powdered drink mixes, shots and concentrates. Nutravail develops innovative delivery systems for the nutrition industry and makes private label products, in addition to producing FRS soft chews and quercetin flake, a key component in FRS’s Healthy Energy formula. “This acquisition complements our current Healthy Performance product suite and enables us to offer our customers additional high quality nutritional products through expanded distribution channels,” said Jim Quandt, FRS chairman of the board.

AquaLiv Acquires Verity Farms
AquaLiv Technologies Inc. (Seattle, Wash.), a life sciences R&D company, has acquired Verity Farms (Sioux Falls, S.D.), a company committed to the sustainability of the family farm. The acquisition adds approximately $4.5 million in total assets to the balance sheet. Verity develops environmentally friendly technologies for the farming, turf, water solutions and food industries. Products include turf fertilizer, natural meats, and non-GMO grains and produce raised according to Verity’s farming protocols; its soil management programs involve “three years of conditioning and cleansing of the soil,” which must be free of more than 250 chemical residues. AquaLiv will change its name to Verity Inc.

In-Shape Partners with Two Investment Groups
In-Shape Health Clubs (Stockton, Calif.), an operator of health clubs with more than 60 locations in California, has partnered with Fremont Private Holdings and Pulse Equity Partners to support its ongoing expansion. In-Shape opened its first club in 1981 and has grown steadily since then to become one of the 15 largest operators of health clubs in the country, according to the investment partners. “In-Shape exemplifies everything we look for in an investment – an attractive service offering, a proven and dedicated team, and a demonstrated history of growth,” said Scott Earthy, managing partner of Fremont.

IGNIA Backs Nutrition Provider in Mexico
IGNIA Fund I, an “impact investing fund” based in Latin America, has made a joint investment with Endeavor Catalyst of $104.4 million pesos ($8.2 million) in Procesamiento Especializado de Alimentos (aka Procesa Chiapas). The company, based in Chiapas, Mexico, develops products with high nutritional value for markets including low-income children served through government food assistance programs, and fortified products for populations suffering from nutritional deficiencies. Among its brands is Marina Azul, Mexico's first tuna in a pouch. IGNIA’s team has worked with Procesa Chiapas for the last five months, developing a business plan and investment strategy. “IGNIA's vision is to help build a more equitable Mexico. Achieving high quality nutrition and a balanced diet that is affordable and accessible for all levels of society is part of our solution. That is why we are investing in Procesa Chiapas, a company with innovative and agile entrepreneurs with a social conscience,” said Leon Kraig , partner and managing director of IGNIA.

SunOpta Acquires Bulgarian Supplier of Organic Sunflower Ingredients
Publicly traded SunOpta Inc. (Brampton, Ontario), a global company focused on natural, organic and specialty food products, has acquired a value-added grains handling and processing facility in Silistra, Bulgaria for €3.2 million inclusive of debt. Operated as the Organic Land Corporation (OLC), the facility supplies SunOpta with value-added organic sunflower kernel and oil. “The location is ideal for securing supply of organic raw materials for further processing and will allow us to expand our capabilities into other organic products that are grown in the UNESCO protected area within the Danube River Delta,” said Gerard Versteegh, president of the SunOpta International Foods Group. For the year ended December 31, 2011 SunOpta reported revenues of $1.1 billion.

OpenTable Folds in Foodspotting App
OpenTable Inc. (San Francisco, Calif.), a provider of online restaurant reservations, has agreed to acquire Foodspotting, an app for finding, sharing and rating restaurant dishes, for approximately $10 million in cash pursuant to a stock purchase agreement. According to OpenTable, the acquisition will help diners book their perfect restaurant table by enabling OpenTable to deliver a richer visual and social experience for diners and to provide its restaurant customers with new opportunities to showcase their offerings. Foodspotting was created in January 2010. Users share a great dish by uploading a photo or saying they "Loved it!" OpenTable seats approximately 10 million diners per month via online bookings for more than 26,000 restaurants, operating in the USA, Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico and the U.K.

NSF International Strengthens Latin American Presence
NSF International (Ann Arbor, Mich.), a global public health and safety organization which develops standards, and tests and certifies products for the food, water and health sciences industries, has acquired the INASSA Group (Lima, Peru). The Group is comprised of International Analytical Services, (INASSA), Environmental Laboratories Peru (Envirolab) and Servicios Integrales de Saneamiento (Servisanea). NSF International, which has offices in Peru, Chile, Brazil, Mexico and Costa Rica, will make NSF-INASSA Group its primary Latin American base for its full range of laboratory testing and technical services for the food, water, pharma and seafood sectors. NSF has made 10 acquisitions between 2000 and 2011, according to its website.

MusclePharm Nets $3.5 Million Offering
MusclePharm Corporation (Denver, Colo.), a sports nutrition company, has announced two closings of a registered direct offering of Series D Convertible Preferred Stock. The Frost Group LLC was the lead investor in the offering, increasing its position in MusclePharm by approximately $1.4 million. Net proceeds to MusclePharm from the closings were approximately $3.5 million. MusclePharm’s products are available through Dick’s Sporting Goods, GNC, Vitamin Shoppe, Vitamin World and other retailers, in addition to online.

KitoZyme Issues New Shares
KitoZyme (Herstal, Belgium), a biochemistry and life sciences company active in the food, cosmetics and medical fields, has announced a capital increase of €9 million. The issue of new shares was reserved for and underwritten by the company’s two main shareholders: the company Valois (Mestdagh Group and Montulet family) and the SRIW, the Wallonia Regional Investment Company. KitoZyme manufactures biomass-derived biopolymers, non-animal chitosan, chitin-glucan and beta-glucan, which it produces using vegetable, renewable and non-GMO sources. In the health and nutrition category the company offers plant-sourced specialty ingredients for the cholesterol management, cardiovascular health, immune health and fiber categories. KitoZyme was set up in December 2000 as a spin-off of the University of Liège.

The Chia Company Receives Growth Investment
VO2 Partners and Arlon Group have made a growth equity investment in The Chia Company (Port Melbourne, Australia), one of the world’s largest chia producers. Chia is a plant source of omega 3, fiber and protein. CEO John Foss, a fourth generation Australian farmer, founded The Chia Co. in 2003 in response to growing demand for healthier foods and has developed a traceable global supply chain for chia. In addition to supplying global food manufacturers like Kellogg’s and PepsiCo, the company produces its own brand of chia products. As part of the investment, Stacy Madison, founder of Stacy's Pita Chips, which was sold to PepsiCo in 2006, will join John Foss and April Helliwell on The Chia Co.’s board of directors, along with Anders Petersen from VO2 Partners and Hunter McCrossin from Arlon Group. The investors have taken a minority stake.


Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for January 14, 2013

Innophos Buys Triarco in $46 Million Deal
Active Health Merges With Manos Beverages
Winery Exchange Expands Organic Portfolio
Benckiser Takes Caribou Coffee Private
Herbalife Closes Acquisition of U.S. Manufacturing Facility
PANOS Acquires Gluten-Free Company Ry-Con
Teasdale Acquires Zateca
Vitamin Shoppe Acquisition of Super Supplements on Hold
FitStar Closes $1 Million Seed Round for Health and Fitness Platform
DSM Buys OatWell Portfolio
Goode Partners Invests in Dave’s Killer Bread
Breakwater Invests in Fitness Company
Carlyle to Sell Qualicaps to Mitsubishi

Innophos Buys Triarco in $46 Million Deal
Innophos Holdings Inc. (Cranbury, N.J.), a global producer of specialty grade phosphate products for the food, pharmaceutical and industrial markets, has acquired Triarco Industries Inc. (Wayne, N.J.), a manufacturer of custom ingredients for the food, beverage, dietary supplement and nutraceutical industries. An Innophos subsidiary purchased all of Triarco's assets for $45 million in cash plus $1 million in shares of Innophos Holdings’ common stock. In business for more than 30 years, privately held Triarco has annualized revenues of approximately $25 million and specializes in botanical and enzyme-based ingredients, according to Innophos, which described the acquisition as “highly complementary” to its mineral ingredients businesses Kelatron and AMT acquired in 2011 and 2012. “The combined businesses of Kelatron, AMT and Triarco enhance Innophos' position in the attractive high growth nutritional ingredients end markets with annual revenues in excess of $50 million,” the company said. Innophos’s annual revenues in fiscal year 2011 were $810 million. Formerly part of Rhodia, it was taken private by Bain Capital in 2004 and completed an IPO in 2006.

Active Health Merges With Manos Beverages
Active Health Foods Inc. (Riverside, Calif.), the maker of organic Active X Energy Bars, has entered into a definitive acquisition agreement with Manos Beverages Inc., maker of All Natural Flavors sparkling drinks sweetened with stevia. Manos Beverages, which also produces an energy drink called Jump Shot and a line of private label cocktail mixes, will be acquired by Active Health Foods in a stock exchange.

Winery Exchange Expands Organic Portfolio
Winery Exchange (Novato, Calif.) has announced the expansion of its National Brands Division with the acquisition of a portfolio of certified organic and sulfite-free wine brands from Orleans Hill Winery (Nevada City, Calif.). In addition to the nationally distributed Our Daily Red and Orleans Hill labels, the deal includes several private brands that also feature organic certification and contain no sulfites. Orleans Hill co-founders Tony Norskog  and Donn Berdahl will remain involved in wine production, distributor and account management, and consumer communications. “We're excited by the growth opportunities presented in the organic food and wine categories and believe we have partnered with two principals who are true pioneers in organic wine production," said Peter Byck, CEO of Winery Exchange.

Benckiser Takes Caribou Coffee Private
Caribou Coffee Company Inc. (Minneapolis, Minn.), the second largest company-owned premium coffeehouse operator in the United States, is being taken private by Germany’s Joh. A. Benckiser Group (JAB) in a deal worth approximately $340 million. Founded in 1992, Caribou Coffee serves 100% Rainforest Alliance certified coffee and espresso. The 610-plus chain will be operated as an independent company. “Caribou has a fantastic brand and unique culture, and fits perfectly with JAB’s investment philosophy of investing in premium and unique brands in attractive growth categories like coffee,” said Bart Becht, JAB chairman. In summer 2012 JAB bought a majority stake in Peet’s Coffee & Tea Inc. for approximately $1 billion.

Herbalife Closes Acquisition of U.S. Manufacturing Facility
Herbalife Ltd. (Los Angeles), a nutrition, weight-management and personal care products company, has completed the purchase of a manufacturing facility in Winston-Salem, N.C., in line with the company’s strategy to increase self-manufacturing for its top products. Over the next two years, Herbalife said it expects to invest in excess of $100 million on machinery and technology, as well as a complete retrofitting of the facility to ensure full compliance with U.S. good manufacturing practices (cGMPs) for dietary supplements and food products. Herbalife products are sold through independent distributors in more than 80 countries.

PANOS Acquires Gluten-Free Company Ry-Con
PANOS Brands LLC (Saddle Brook, N.J.), a portfolio company of High Road Capital Partners, has acquired Ry-Con Specialty Foods Inc. (Mechanicsburg, Pa.), a producer of hormone-free cheeses and other products without antibiotics, preservatives or animal by-products under the Andrew & Everett brand. PANOS was acquired by High Road in December 2010 and makes natural and specialty food and beverage brands, including KA-ME Asian food, MI-DEL natural and gluten-free cookies, Sesmark rice and wheat crackers, and Amore cooking pastes. “Our acquisition further broadens PANOS’ product line in the natural and gluten-free categories,” said Steven Grossman, CEO of PANOS. The transaction represents the first add-on acquisition for PANOS under High Road’s ownership.

Teasdale Acquires Zateca
Teasdale Quality Foods Inc. (Atwater, Calif.), a manufacturer of Hispanic foods, canned hominy and beans and conventional and organic canned dried beans, has acquired Zateca Foods LLC (Greeley, Colo.) and its sister organization Greeley Trading Company. Terms were not disclosed. Zateca is a vertically integrated producer of pre-cooked, dehydrated beans, which it sells to institutional foodservice providers, ingredient and spice manufacturers, commissaries and branded food manufacturers. Its main product offerings include refried bean mix, pre-cooked dry whole beans, bean flakes, bean powder, bean granules and quick cooking beans. Teasdale is a portfolio company of a private equity fund affiliated with Palladium Equity Partners LLC, which focuses on investments in the U.S. Hispanic marketplace. This is Teasdale’s second acquisition following its September 2012 purchase of Hoopeston Foods Inc., a producer of conventional and organic canned dried beans in the Midwestern U.S.

Vitamin Shoppe Acquisition of Super Supplements on Hold
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has notified The Vitamin Shoppe (North Bergen, N.J.) that it is conducting an investigation into its planned acquisition of Super Supplements Inc. (Seattle, Wash.). A specialty retailer and direct marketer of nutritional products, The Vitamin Shoppe announced on December 17, 2012 a definitive agreement to purchase the Super Supplements retail chain for approximately $50 million. Super Supplements operates 31 stores in Washington, Oregon and Idaho and would expand the Vitamin Shoppe’s presence in the Pacific Northwest, where it currently operates only 17 stores. If the deal proceeds, Vitamin Shoppe expects Super Supplements to contribute approximately $75 million in revenue in 2013. The Vitamin Shoppe conducts business through more than 560 company-operated retail stores, the Internet and national mail order catalogs, generating net sales of $856.6 million in fiscal year 2011, up from $436.5 million in fiscal 2005.

FitStar Closes $1 Million Seed Round for Health and Fitness Platform
FitStar Labs Inc. (San Francisco), a company building a digital health and fitness platform for health and fitness content, has closed a $1 million financing round led by Google Ventures; a short-list of early investors includes Advancit Capital and Floodgate Fund. The seed round will be used to grow FitStar’s team and support its first product, a video-based iPad app, in the first half of 2013. Founded in 2012, FitStar is led by Mike Maser, a former executive with AOL, Electronic Arts and Digg. “We are passionate about improving the health of millions of people by creating a new technology platform to power health and fitness apps that are engaging, entertaining, and which adapt to each user’s capabilities,” said Maser.

DSM Buys OatWell Portfolio
DSM Nutritional Products (Parsippany, N.J.) has reached agreement with Swedish Oat Fiber (SOF, Bua, Sweden) to acquire the OatWell portfolio of oat bran ingredients rich in beta glucan, a water-soluble dietary fiber. The deal also means that DSM will assume sales and marketing activities from SOF’s subsidiary CreaNutrition. SOF will continue to produce OatWell products at its factory in Sweden. OatWell ingredients are sold to food, beverage and dietary supplement manufacturers seeking to add health benefits to their products. In 2011 the European Food Safety Authority certified the cholesterol-reducing effect of OatWell oat beta-glucan. In 1997 the U.S. Food & Drug Administration approved a heart health claim for soluble fiber from certain foods and lists oat bran as an eligible source.

Goode Partners Invests in Dave’s Killer Bread
Dave's Killer Bread (DKB, Portland, Ore.) has received an equity investment from Goode Partners with the goal of scaling up manufacturing and distribution beyond the western United States while maintaining product quality. Launched seven years ago, the bakery, which makes organic, whole grain, vegan and GMO-free bread products, has “grown steadily” and is now available in 11 states, the company said. Dave Dahl, who co-founded DKB with family members, will remain leader of product development, brand development and philanthropy. In addition to its charitable initiatives, DKB provides equal job opportunities to former inmates, a cause close to Dahl’s heart after the nearly 15 years he spent in prison. Three representatives from Goode Partners will join the board. Business acceleration firm The Meriwether Group partnered with Cascadia Capital to provide strategic counsel; both have worked with other Pacific Northwest brands, including Oregon Chai, Laughing Planet and Bike Gallery. In 2011 DKB was ranked number 850 on Inc. magazine’s top 5000 list of fastest-growing companies in the United States, with revenues of $27.4 million and three-year growth of 364%.

Breakwater Invests in Fitness Company
Breakwater Investment Management LLC has announced a significant growth capital investment in Exhale Enterprises Inc. (New York, N.Y.). Founded in 2003, Exhale offers mind-body fitness classes (including yoga and its proprietary Core Fusion program), in addition to spa and healing therapies, wellbeing retreats and nutrition programs. Exhale has 20 locations in 11 markets including in upscale hotels and resorts. “The new financing from Breakwater will provide Exhale with the capital needed to support our ongoing expansion, particularly through securing well-placed, profitable new unit opportunities,” said Annbeth Eschbach, president and CEO of Exhale.

Carlyle to Sell Qualicaps to Mitsubishi
The Carlyle Group has agreed to sell Qualicaps (Nara, Japan) to Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings (Tokyo, Japan) subject to regulatory approvals. Qualicaps is a global manufacturer of hard gelatin capsules and non-gelatin cellulose-based capsules, including Quali-V, a pharmaceutical grade vegetarian capsule for the pharma and nutrition industries. According to news reports, Mitsubishi Chemical will pay about $654.2 million for Qualicaps, and estimates that Qualicaps will bring in ¥19.1 billion in sales in 2012. Carlyle acquired Qualicaps, formerly Shionogi Qualicaps, in October 2005. Its expansion strategy resulted in an increase in revenue and EBITDA of more than 50% and 120% respectively for Qualicaps. Mitsubishi Chemical said in a statement that the capsule market has enjoyed stable single-digit growth in recent years and now has a roughly ¥100 billion market size. In 2011 Pfizer sold Capsugel, a maker of hard capsules, for $2.38 billion. Capsugel generated approximately $750 million in revenue in 2010.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for December 19, 2012

Transactions
Coca Cola and Select Milk Invest in Core Power
Revolution Foods Raises Another $3 Million
Online Farmers’ Market Raises Funds
NatureBox Closes $2 Million in Seed Funding
23andMe Raises More than $50 Million
HelloFresh Receives Growth Capital
Brynwood Sells Stake in Sun Country Foods
BVM Invests in Fitness Interactive
LNK Invests in Beachbody
Naturex Receives Investment from Groupe Caravelle
ChromaDex Acquires Spherix Consulting
Aenova Acquires Euro Vital
WhiteWave Raises $60 Million From Sale of Assets

Coca Cola and Select Milk Invest in Core Power
Coca-Cola Company (Atlanta, Ga.) and Select Milk Producers Inc. (Artesia, N.M.) are investing in the newly created Fair Oaks Farms Brands LLC, maker of Core Power high protein milk shake. The investment is intended not only to grow sales of the post workout recovery drink but also to “create an innovative portfolio of brands and products” based on dairy nutrition. "Our leadership in technology, innovation and sustainability within the dairy industry, combined with The Coca-Cola Company's brand development and distribution capabilities, will enable a new portfolio of nutritional beverages with strong growth potential," said Mike McCloskey, co-founder and CEO of Select, an independent group of 87 American family farmers. The investment is led by Coca-Cola’s Venturing & Emerging Brands group (VEB), whose past and current portfolio includes FUZE vitamin-enhanced juices, NOS energy drinks, Honest Tea, Zico Coconut Water, and Cascal fermented juice beverages. U.S. soda giants are increasingly interested in the dairy market. Earlier this year PepsiCo and German dairy company Theo Müller Group formed the Müller Quaker Dairy joint venture to participate in the U.S. yogurt market.

Revolution Raises Another $3 Million
Revolution Foods Inc. (Oakland, Calif.) has raised $3 million by selling debt and options, according to a regulatory filing, with proceeds to be used for general working capital. Co-founded in 2005 by CEO Kristin Groos Richmond and Kirsten Tobey to transform the way the nation feeds its students and children, Revolution Foods delivers healthy meals and nutrition education to schools across the country. Its meals service is currently available in California, Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. The company recently submitted the lowest bid for a contract to supply the San Francisco Unified School District, according to the San Francisco Business Times. Revolution Foods was listed #301 on the 2012 Inc. 5000 with annual revenues of $36 million.

Online Farmers’ Market Raises Funds
Farmigo (Palo Alto, Calif.), which operates an online farmers’ market, has raised $8 million in Series B financing led by Sherbrooke Capital and RSF Social Finance, joined by Series A lead investor Benchmark Capital. Farmigo aims to connect workplaces, schools, and community centers directly to local farms, with the first “food communities” rolling out in San Francisco and New York followed by Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, Denver, Chicago and Philadelphia, the company said. Food items are selected online by food community members and delivered weekly to a food community site within 48 hours of harvest. “The Internet has been collapsing supply chains… for nearly two decades, but until now it has had limited impact on the food industry,” said Farmigo founder and CEO Benzi Ronen. “Farmigo is poised to fundamentally change the way food is purchased and distributed.” Farmigo started in 2009 as an online software provider to help farms manage community-supported agriculture (CSA) subscriptions. CSA organizations and farmer’s markets have been growing 40% annually for the last decade, but currently less than 1% of the U.S. population purchases directly from farms, the company said. Sherbrooke Capital is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

NatureBox Closes $2 Million in Seed Funding
NatureBox (San Carlos, Calif.), a healthy snack subscription service, has closed a $2 million round of seed funding co-led by General Catalyst Partners and Redpoint Ventures. Launched in January 2012, NatureBox snacks are delivered monthly in a recyclable box that contains 15 to 20 servings of 4 to 6 items “curated” by a nutritionist. The boxes cost $19.95 and shipping is free. Snacks are based on a seasonal health & wellness theme and sourced from local growers and independent food suppliers; they are free of high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, trans fats, and artificial sweeteners, flavors, and colors. December’s box, for example, included pistachio clusters, masa chips, blueberry flax granola, and dried pears. The NatureBox concept was inspired by Gautam Gupta’s personal struggle with childhood obesity. Gupta, a former venture capitalist, co-founded NatureBox with college friend Ken Chen, a real estate investor and entrepreneur.

23andMe Raises More than $50 Million
23andMe Inc. (Mountainview, Calif.), a personal genetics company founded in 2006, has raised more than $50 million in a Series D financing. Participants included new investor Yuri Milner and existing investors Sergey Brin, 23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki, New Enterprise Associates, Google Ventures, and MPM Capital. The investment, combined with decreasing costs associated with genetic testing technologies, will enable 23andMe to reduce the price of its Personal Genome Service to $99 from $299, the company said. Funds will also be used to build a community of 1 million customers, up from 180,000 currently. “A community of this magnitude will improve researchers’ ability to quickly answer questions about genetic function and the role of environmental factors. In addition, it will enable researchers to understand medication efficacy and side effects, in both medications that exist today and medications that are in development,” Wojcicki said. The vision for 23andMe is to personalize healthcare by making and supporting meaningful discoveries through genetic research.

HelloFresh Receives Growth Capital
HelloFresh (Berlin, Germany), an e-commerce provider of recipes and the ingredients needed to prepare them from scratch, said it has closed a growth financing round “in the high seven figures.” Reported to be around $10 million by online financial press, the funding was led by new investor Vorwerk Ventures of Germany, which focuses on companies that use direct-selling channels. Prior investors Rocket Internet, Holtzbrinck Ventures, and Kinnevik AB also participated. HelloFresh is active in Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, and the United States. Subscribers receive five recipes to choose from each week, and the company delivers the fresh ingredients in exact amounts needed for the recipes. Meals can be ordered for two, four or six people; three meals for four cost $129 per week. HelloFresh was founded in December 2011. 

Brynwood Sells Stake in Sun Country Foods
Brynwood Partners VI LP has sold its investment in Sun Country Foods Inc. (Norwood, Mass.) to Continental Mills Inc. (Tukwila, Wash.). Financial details were not disclosed. Sun Country Foods was formed by Brynwood VI in 2011 to acquire the Kretschmer Wheat Germ brand from The Quaker Oats Company. Founded in 1936 by Charles Kretschmer, the brand has 90% share of the U.S. wheat germ category. Continental Mills is a manufacturer and marketer of flour mixes and related products, including the Krusteaz brand. This is Brynwood VI’s second portfolio company sale in the last month. In November it announced the sale of The Balance Bar Food Company to NBTY Inc. for a consideration of approximately $78 million.

BVM Invests in Fitness Interactive
BVM Capital has made an seed round investment in Fitness Interactive Experience (FIX) (Atlanta, Ga.), a pre-revenue gaming company developing “massively multiplayer on-line games” (MMOGs) and a social media platform for health and fitness. Founded in 2012, FIX has recently finished prototyping UtiliFIT, a mobile platform based activity game that challenges players to complete micro-physical challenges throughout the day, helping to reduce sedentary behavior. “Opportunities for socially connected fitness games such as UtiliFIT to positively influence health behavior on a mass scale are enormous and could be a game changer,” said Tim Church, M.D., professor of preventative medicine at Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University and a member of FIX’s strategic advisory board. An early beta version of the game is now available. MMOGs are multiplayer video games capable of supporting thousands of players simultaneously. FIX was founded by Mike Tinney, former executive of CCP Games. BVM Capital’s portfolio includes Body Evolution, operator of the Body Image Project, Chow Town Inc. for the prevention of childhood obesity, and NuMe Health, a developer of cobiotic products and an NCN Presenting Company in 2011.

LNK Invests in Beachbody
LNK Partners has made a minority growth capital investment in Beachbody LLC (Santa Monica, Calif.), a direct marketer of health and fitness programs and products, including nutritional shakes and meal replacements. Over the last 14 years Beachbody’s portfolio has grown to 20 fitness brands and more than 15 nutritional products including P90X, INSANITY, Turbo Jam, Shakeology, Ultimate Reset, Brazil Butt Lift, and 10-Minute Trainer, which it sells through direct response television, e-commerce, and a direct sales network of coaches. The company has also expanded into the beauty category with Derm Exclusive. Two of LNK's partners will join Beachbody's board of directors. LNK's current portfolio includes Au Bon Pain, Natural Food Holdings (Niman Ranch), Life Time Fitness and Spyder Active Sports.

Naturex Receives Investment from Groupe Caravelle
Naturex (Avignon, France), an international supplier of botanicals and specialty plant-based ingredients, has received equity investment from Groupe Caravelle, a diversified French industrial group with pharmaceutical holdings. Caravelle's investment follows the sale by Natraceutical (Valencia, Spain) of a 15% stake in Naturex earlier in December. Natraceutical had become a 38% shareholder in Naturex in December 2009 after Naturex acquired Natraceutical’s Ingredients Division. That acquisition had doubled the size of Naturex. Natraceutical had indicated its intention since 2011 to gradually divest its holdings in Naturex and in recent months significantly reduced its stake. Naturex reported revenues of €223.1 million for the nine months to September 30, 2012, up 17% from last year’s comparable period.

ChromaDex Acquires Spherix Consulting
ChromaDex Corporation (Irvine, Calif.), a natural products company that provides proprietary, science-based solutions and ingredients to the dietary supplement, food & beverage, animal health, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries, has acquired Spherix Consulting Inc., a subsidiary of Spherix Inc. (Bethesda, Md.). The sale is an initial step in Spherix Inc.’s restructuring program. The consultancy provides regulatory and scientific advisory services related to product liability, changing scientific standards or public perceptions; literature evaluations; and design and assessment of pre-clinical and clinical safety testing. It specializes in regulatory submissions for food and dietary supplement ingredients. "Given the rapidly changing regulatory environment, these services have never been more critical for suppliers, manufacturers and retailers," said ChromaDex founder and CEO Frank Jaksch. Besides offering natural product reference standards, materials and services, Chromadex also develops and markets natural products. Sales of its BluScience line of dietary supplements featuring proprietary pTeroPure brand pterostilbene were largely responsible for the company’s 99% increase in revenues to $3.6 million for the third quarter ended September 29, 2012, compared to the same period a year prior. Pterostilbene is an antioxidant found in blueberries.

Aenova Acquires Euro Vital
The Aenova Group (Pahl, Germany), a global pharmaceutical and healthcare company, is taking over Euro Vital Pharma GmbH (Hamburg, Germany) as part of its ongoing growth strategy. Purchase price was not released, and regulatory approval will be required. Euro Vital is a pharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures, and markets branded and private label health products. It has more than 30 medicines approved for the German market, together with dietary supplements and cosmetic products, which consist primarily of salves, gels, syrups, and nasal sprays. Aenova generates annual sales of €280 million from services for the development, manufacturing and sale of solid dosage forms like soft gelatin capsules, hard capsules, conventional tablets, film-coated tablets, dragées and effervescent tablets.

WhiteWave Raises $60 Million From Sale of Assets
The WhiteWave Foods Company (Broomfield, Colo.) has agreed to sell certain assets to Morningstar Foods for $60 million in connection with the separately announced sale by Dean Foods Company (Dallas) of its Morningstar business to Saputo Inc. (Montreal, Quebec), the largest dairy processor in Canada. WhiteWave brands in the United States include Silk soymilk, Horizon Organic Premium Dairy products, International Delight, and Land O’Lakes Coffee Creamers and Beverages. In Europe WhiteWave’s dairy alternative brands include Alpro and Provamel. Morningstar will continue to manufacture certain products for the company. Net proceeds will be used “to reduce outstanding debt, which will in turn allow us greater flexibility to continue to pursue our strategic growth plans,” said Gregg Engles, WhiteWave’s Chairman and CEO.  WhiteWave was spun off from Dean Foods in October 2012 in an IPO that raised $391 million. Its total net sales for the quarter ended September 30, 2012 were $574.9 million, up 13% over the prior year’s quarter.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for November 30, 2012

Transactions
Balance Bar Sold to NBTY
Reckitt Outbids Bayer for Schiff Nutrition
BASF to Acquire Omega-3 Producer Pronova
Retrofit Weight Loss Raises $8 Million in Series A Financing
Healthrageous Secures $6.5 Million in Series B Funding
Katadyn Adds Camping Meals in U.S.
Nu Skin Acquires Biotech Company
Eco-Products Acquired by Waddington
Evolva To Acquire Fluxome Assets
Berkshire Invests in Farm Boy Grocery Chain
Nestlé Health Science Forges Chinese Medicine Joint Venture

Balance Bar Sold to NBTY
Brynwood Partners VI LP has sold Balance Bar Company (Valhalla, N.Y.) to NBTY Inc. (Ronkonkoma, N.Y.), a leading dietary supplements manufacturer and retailer. The transaction was pegged at around $78 million or a return of about 2.5 times Brynwood's investment, according to a source cited by The Wall Street Journal. Balance Bar was founded in 1992, went public in 1998, and was sold to Kraft for $268 million in 2000 (the same year Nestlé bought PowerBar). By the mid-2000s the nutrition bar market had become increasingly crowded and competitive, and the company’s sales declined precipitously. In 2009 Kraft sold Balance Bar to Brynwood for an undisclosed amount reported to be less than a fifth of what Kraft had paid. NBTY is the leading U.S. supplement manufacturer with 2012 sales of $3 billion and owns the sports nutrition oriented MET-Rx and Pure Protein nutrition bars. Balance Bars are based on the nutrition model popularized by Barry Sears’ Zone diet (40 carb/30 protein/30 dietary fat). According to Nutrition Business Journal, U.S. sales of nutrition bars, energy gels and chews reached $2.8 billion in 2011, up 13%. In August 2012, Brynwood announced a definitive agreement to acquire a controlling stake in Kraft’s Back to Nature brand.

Reckitt Outbids Bayer for Schiff Nutrition
Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC (Slough, U.K.) looks set to acquire Schiff Nutrition International Inc. (Salt Lake City, Utah), a leading provider of branded nutritional supplements and bars, for approximately $1.4 billion in cash. Bayer of Germany had previously offered a deal valued at $1.2 billion; Schiff will pay Bayer a $22 million termination fee. Reckitt’s purchase price is 16.5 times the $85 million of EBITDA that Schiff expects to make in the year to May 2013, according to Reuters. Schiff’s best known brands include Move Free for joint health, MegaRed omega-3 for heart health, Schiff Vitamins, Airborne for immunity, and Tiger’s Milk, a nutrition bar introduced in the 1960s. Schiff generated net sales of $259 million in fiscal year ended May 31, 2012. Reckitt is a global consumer goods leader in health, hygiene, and home products and ranks in the top 25 companies on the London Stock Exchange. Reckitt brands include Lysol, Clearasil, Calgon, Dettol, Nurofen and others.

BASF to Acquire Omega-3 Producer Pronova
BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany) plans to acquire publicly traded Pronova BioPharma ASA (Lysaker, Norway), a producer of omega-3 fatty acids, in a cash offer worth approximately $845 million, including debt. Herkules Private Equity, Kistefos and Pronova’s directors and management, together representing approximately 60% of the share capital and votes, have pre-accepted the offer. Commitment from shareholders representing 90% of share capital will be needed. In addition to producing omega-3 dietary supplements and clinical nutrition products derived mostly from fish oil, Pronova supplies the omega-3 heart medicine Omacor/Lovaza, the first EU- and FDA-approved omega 3-derived prescription drug. End-user sales for the drug in year ended December 31, 2011 reached $1.4 billion, according to IMS Health. Pronova is also pursuing long-term R&D into lipid-derived therapies for treatment of metabolic, cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases. Pronova would be integrated into BASF’s Nutrition & Health division. “The intended acquisition will significantly strengthen our position in the fast growing and highly profitable market for omega-3 fatty acids,” said Michael Heinz, a member of the BASF SE board of executive directors and the executive responsible for the Nutrition & Health division. In May 2012, DSM acquired another leading fish oil supplier Ocean Nutrition Canada for $540 million, after acquiring leading algae-based DHA and ARA supplier Martek for $1.1 billion in February 2011. BASF is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Retrofit Weight Loss Raises $8 Million in Series A Financing
Retrofit (Chicago), a “high-tech, high-touch” weight loss start-up that addresses the underlying physical and psychological hurdles of losing weight, has raised $8 million in Series A financing led by Draper Fisher Jurvetson. DFJ has invested $6 million; also participating were Correlation Ventures, Hyde Park Angels, New World Ventures, and I2A Fund. DFJ Managing Director Mohanjit Jolly will join the company’s board of directors. Retrofit’s weight loss program includes wireless monitoring of a client's weight, activity and sleep, in addition to online consultations with a registered dietitian, exercise physiologist, and behavior coach, as well as video conferencing via Skype. The company has 80 full-time and part-time employees nationwide. CEO Jeff Hyman founded Retrofit after he and his wife shared a life changing experience at an exclusive weight loss resort. The financing brings total investment in Retrofit to $10.7 million.

Healthrageous Secures $6.5 Million in Series B Funding
Healthrageous Inc. (Boston), a digital health self-management company, has received $6.5 million in Series B financing from North Bridge Venture Partners, Egan-Managed Capital, Long River and an undisclosed investor. This latest round, which brings the company’s total financing to $15 million since 2010, will be used to enhance its consumer-facing web and mobile interfaces, analytics engines, and machine learning platform. Healthrageous helps individuals prevent and manage chronic health conditions by using personalized goal setting, health journey maps with gaming dynamics, biometric feedback, and interactive digital coaching. The digital coach uses inspirational messages, recognition and incentives, challenges, social networking, trackers and reminders, and interactive educational content, among other tools. “Healthrageous has only begun to scratch the surface of empowering consumers, which will ultimately improve the health of our population and the bottom lines of health plans, employers and pharmas,” said Bill Geary, investor at North Bridge Venture Partners.

Katadyn Adds Camping Meals in U.S.
Katadyn North America Inc. (Minneapolis), a subsidiary of water filtration company Katadyn Group (Zurich, Switzerland), has acquired the assets of TyRy Inc. (Rocklin, Calif.), a producer of freeze-dried and dehydrated instant meals. Terms were not disclosed. Ty-Ry sells the Natural High, Richmoor, AlpineAire Foods, and Gourmet Reserves brands, in addition to co-packing services for dry food goods. In Europe, Katadyn owns a leading brand of dehydrated food, Trek ‘n Eat. “Katadyn now offers everything outdoor enthusiasts require for their camp kitchen," said Shawn Hostetter, president of Katadyn North America. The food business will operate as Katadyn North America Foods LLC. Worldwide, Katadyn Group employs nearly 170 people, including this acquisition. Demand is growing despite a slow economy,” Hostetter told SNEWS.com in November: “When times get tough, water filters and dehydrated foods sell really well.”

Nu Skin Acquires Biotech Company
Nu Skin Enterprises Inc. (Provo, Utah) has signed an agreement to acquire NOX Technologies Inc. (Malvern, Pa.), a biotechnology and bio-diagnostic company, for $12.5 million. The agreement includes previously licensed technology already used in connection with Nu Skin's anti-aging research efforts. Established in 2003, NOX Technologies focuses on the identification, characterization and detection of cell surface proteins related to aging. The company has identified agents that interact with age-related ECTO-NOX proteins (arNOX). Its discovery of specific inhibitors of arNOX that potentially ameliorate skin damage and the signs of aging led to Nu Skin's development of certain skin care products. “The acquisition of NOX Technologies demonstrates our ongoing commitment to scientific innovation and provides us with additional tools to target the sources of aging,” said Chief Scientific Officer Joe Chang.

Eco-Products Acquired by Waddington
Eco-Products Inc. (Boulder, Colo.), a maker of sustainable foodservice products, has been acquired by Waddington North America (Covington, Ky.), where it will operate as a separate division. Eco-Products' line of environmentally friendly cups, plates, and utensils are made with renewable, compostable, and post-consumer recycled materials. Waddington is a manufacturer of disposable servingware, cutlery and custom packaging; although most of its products are conventional, it also owns the environmentally friendly EarthSense and EcoSense brands. This is the first acquisition for Waddington since being acquired by Olympus Partners in October 2012. “We remain focused on our strategy to drive growth in the foodservice disposables market organically and through acquisition of industry-leading companies,” said Manu Bettegowda, a partner at Olympus.

Evolva To Acquire Fluxome Assets
Evolva Holding SA, a company traded on the SIX Swiss Stock Exchange, has agreed to acquire certain assets of Fluxome Sciences A/S, a privately held Danish company that is in reconstruction. The agreement is subject to creditor and court approval. Evolva has a proprietary, fermentation-based platform that allows innovative approaches to the production of ingredients for the food, beverage and consumer health sectors. Fluxome was established in 2002 as a spinoff from the Technical University of Denmark. The company produces nutritional ingredients using novel metabolic engineering and fermentation methods. In 2009, Fluxome opened a sales office in the United States and introduced its resveratrol product commercially. Evolva was a Presenting Company at NCN XI in October, 2012; Fluxome presented at NCN VIII in April, 2011.

Berkshire Invests in Farm Boy Grocery Chain
Berkshire Partners LLC (Boston) has signed a definitive agreement to make a growth equity investment in Farm Boy Inc. (Ottowa, Canada ), a retail grocer recognized for its produce, meat, bakery, cheese and fresh kitchen prepared items. Terms were not disclosed. The retailer has grown from a single store in 1981 to 13 stores today serving the Greater Ottawa and Cornwall, Ont. areas. Farm Boy, which follows a small-store format combined with high levels of customer service, also produces its own line of private label products.

Nestlé Health Science Forges Chinese Medicine Joint Venture
Nestlé Health Science and the pharmaceutical and healthcare group Chi-Med have agreed to form a 50/50 joint venture to be named Nutrition Science Partners Limited. NSP will research, develop, manufacture and market innovative nutritional and medicinal products derived from plants. The new partnership will give Nestlé Health Science access to one of the leading Traditional Chinese Medicine libraries. NSP will focus on gastrointestinal health and may expand into metabolic disease and brain health. The new partnership will build on Nestlé Health Science’s ambition to explore personalized health care combining nutrition, drugs and diagnostics. Nestlé Health Science has made a number of investments in its gastrointestinal portfolio, including a minority stake in Vital Foods of New Zealand and the acquisition of CM&D Pharma Ltd. NSP will be funded primarily through the initial Nestlé Health Sciences capital investment and milestone payments linked to the success of clinical and commercial activities.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News, November 16, 2012

Transactions
Tate & Lyle Forms Second Venture Fund
Hain Celestial Active in Raw Food Category
DSM to Acquire Fortitech in $630 Million Deal
Kellogg Foundation Invests $4.6 Million in Happy Family
Tofu Manufacturer Acquires El Burrito
Zentis Expands U.S. Business By Acquiring Sweet Ovations
Continental Mills Gains Entry to Health-Oriented Food Categories
Mindbody Secures $35 Million for International Expansion
eDiets.com Acquired in $15 Million Transaction
Corporate Wellness Company Limeade Gets $5 Million Financing
Presence Marking To Acquire Topline
Healthier Pizza Companies Unite
Flowers Foods Cleared to Buy Earthgrains Bakery Brand
Aenova To Buy Temmler

Tate & Lyle Forms Second Venture Fund
Tate & Lyle Plc (London, U.K.) has announced an investment of up to £30 million over eight years in a new venture capital fund. In line with Tate & Lyle’s strategy to grow in specialty food ingredients, the new fund will invest in start-ups and expansion-stage companies in both developed and emerging markets in food sciences and enabling technologies. As with Tate & Lyle’s first venture fund of April 2006, the new fund will be independently led and managed by Simon Barnes and David Atkinson. “Busy lives, an ageing population and rapid urbanization in emerging markets mean that consumers across the world are looking to food to offer lifestyle solutions and bring added benefits such as fortification and enrichment. New technologies will be instrumental in this convergence as the world’s major food companies increasingly reposition themselves with a focus on innovation and health,” said Atkinson. The new fund will be formally launched in January 2013. Tate & Lyle Ventures is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Hain Celestial Active in Raw Food Category
Publicly traded Hain Celestial Group Inc. (Melville, N.Y.), a leading natural and organic products company, has entered into a letter of intent to acquire BluePrint (New York, N.Y.), a marketer and manufacturer of raw, organic cold-pressed fruit and vegetable juices. Products include BluePrintCleanse, a delivery program designed to detoxify the body; BluePrintJuice; and BluePrintBar, a raw fruit and nut bar. Founders will continue to manage all aspects of BluePrint, reporting to John Carroll, CEO of Hain Celestial United States. Founded in 2007, BluePrint had a $20-25 million run rate derived mostly from the brand’s cleanse products, according to Bevnet. Juice cleanses are priced at $65-$80 per day and delivered in batches of up to three days at a time. Coolers are shipped nationwide and to Canada via FedEx Priority Overnight and are available for pickup at select locations across the United States. The acquisition is expected to close by year’s end.

DSM to Acquire Fortitech in $630 Million Deal
Royal DSM (Heerlen, The Netherlands) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Fortitech Inc. (Schenectady, N.Y.) for $634 million in cash. The transaction is expected to close before year’s end. Fortitech makes customized, value-added food ingredient blends for the food and beverage, infant nutrition, and dietary supplements industries. Net Fortitech sales in 2013 are expected to be about $270 million with an EBITDA of $70 million, resulting in an EV/EBITDA multiple of about 9. DSM said it has identified attractive cost synergies at about 10% of net sales, and one-time synergies (primarily capital expenditure avoidance) of around $70 million. Fortitech has approximately 520 employees and six production sites worldwide. DSM’s rationale for the acquisition included ingredient customers seeking one-stop shopping, and rapid growth in food ingredient blends as food and beverage, infant formula, and dietary supplement companies transition from in-house production to external supply partners. Annual growth of the global food ingredient blends industry is expected to continue in the high single digits, driven by high growth economies and increased outsourcing, DSM said. DSM is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Kellogg Foundation Invests $4.6 Million in Happy Family
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (Battle Creek, Mich.) has announced a $4.6 million investment in Happy Family (Brooklyn, N.Y.), a producer of premium organic foods for toddlers and young children. The mission-driven investment, a combination of equity and loans, will help Happy Family to grow its operations, expand product lines, and “drive the two organizations' shared vision to make healthy, high-quality food for young children more accessible to families that would normally consider these options too expensive,” the Foundation stated. Happy Family offers organic nutrient-dense products which are packaged in eco-friendly, preservative-free pouches and sold in 13,000 stores nationwide through mass market retailers such as Target and Walmart and regional and ethnic chains including Meijer and HEB. According to the Foundation, prices compare favorably to organic products sold in specialty grocers. The investment was part of the Foundation's mission driven investment arm which seeks both social and financial returns. $100 million has been allocated to invest in businesses around the globe that align with the Foundation’s mission of improving the lives of vulnerable children and families. Happy Baby (Nuture Inc.), a predecessor brand to Happy Family, presented its business plan at NCN III in Fall 2008. Kellogg is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Tofu Manufacturer Acquires El Burrito
House Foods America Corp.(Arden Grove, Calif.), a subsidiary of House Foods Corporation Japan, has acquired El Burrito Mexican Food Products Inc. (City of Industry, Calif.), a healthy Mexican food brand. The company will become a subsidiary of House Foods Holding USA Inc. Financial terms were not disclosed. “Adding healthy Mexican food products to our existing Asian line will allow us to offer consumers a wider variety of healthy lifestyle choices. In the U.S. market, where many different cultures coexist, we anticipate accelerated growth and expanded profits as a result," said Shigeru Natake, president of House Foods America. El Burrito, which was formed in 1980 by Mark and Grace Roth, says it was the first company in California to offer fresh salsas, which were sold in the deli and meat departments of local grocery stores. In the 1990s, El Burrito pioneered soy meat alternatives in traditional Mexican flavors; best known is Soyrizo, a non-meat version of chorizo. House Foods America specializes in tofu products, using only non genetically modified (non-GMO) soybeans grown in the United States.

Zentis Expands U.S. Business By Acquiring Sweet Ovations
Zentis (Aachen, Germany), one of Europe’s largest fruit-processing companies, has acquired Sweet Ovations LLC (Philadelphia, Pa.) from Speyside Equity. Sweet Ovations is a food ingredients business with annual revenues exceeding $100 million. “We feel that we have taken the company as far as we reasonably could during our seven years of ownership. Sweet Ovations needs to continue to grow, and the opportunity presented by such a focused, global leader as Zentis makes a lot of sense,” said Speyside partner Kevin Daugherty. Sweet Ovations was established in 1931 and sells ingredients primarily to the yogurt, bakery, and ice-cream industries, in addition to large clients in the foodservice industry. Zentis has operated its own manufacturing facility in Plymouth, Ind. since 2006. It is the second largest producer of jams and fruit spreads in Germany.

Continental Mills Gains Entry to Health-Oriented Food Categories
Continental Mills Inc. (Tukwila, Wash.) has acquired Diversified Marketing Solutions LLC (Owasso, Okla.), including the WildRoots and TrueBliss brands. Wildroots makes natural and organic snack foods and breakfast cereals using whole grains, raw nuts, and berries. TrueBliss is a confection brand. The purchases “give us an opportunity to leverage our consumer products channel infrastructure and supply chain network to grow these great brands. We are very interested in investing in our branded business, and this gives us an entrance into multiple health-oriented food categories of products,” said John Heily, president and CEO of Continental Mills. Both acquired brands began operations in 2007. Founded in 1932, privately held Continental Mills manufactures and markets baking mix products for the food industry; its leading brands include Krusteaz, Ghirardelli Baking Mixes, and Alpine. Terms were not disclosed.

Mindbody Secures $35 Million for International Expansion
Mindbody (San Luis Obispo, Calif.), a provider of online business management software to the beauty, health and wellness industries, has secured a $35-million investment led by Institutional Venture Partners. Existing investors Catalyst Investors and Bessemer Venture Partners also participated. Funds will be used to accelerate Mindbody’s international expansion and product development. Mindbody’s “software as a service” (SaaS) business management solution helps local businesses manage all aspects of operations, from web scheduling and staff management to payment processing, automated marketing, and e-commerce. It serves over 21,000 health, wellness, and beauty-based businesses in 80 countries worldwide. Mindbody started in 2001 as a software consultancy developing management solutions for yoga, pilates, and spinning studios. Since then it has expanded into additional personal service markets. In August Mindbody was recognized for the sixth time by Inc. magazine as one of the fastest-growing companies in the United States, ranking 109 among software companies and 1,341 overall. Mindbody said revenues have grown 229% over the last three years.

eDiets.com Acquired in $15 Million Transaction
As Seen On TV Inc. (Clearwater, Fla.), a direct response marketing company and owner of AsSeenOnTV.com, has agreed to acquire publicly traded eDiets.com Inc. (Pompano Beach, Fla.), a provider of home-delivered fresh and flash-frozen prepared meals for weight management. The transaction is a stock-for-stock deal valued at approximately $15 million. eDiets.com reported revenues for the year ended December 31, 2011 of $22.1 million. The merger is expected to close in the first quarter of 2013, at which time eDiets.com will become a wholly owned subsidiary of As Seen On TV. The companies’ shared vision includes a plan to create a long-form infomercial to acquire customers and spur growth of eDiets.com.

Corporate Wellness Company Limeade Gets $5 million Financing
Limeade (Bellvue, Wash.), a software-as-a-service (SaaS) corporate wellness company, has secured $5 million in Series B financing from TVC Capital. The total amount of capital raised by Limeade since its inception in 2006 to $8.5 million. Steven J. Hamerslag, TVC Capital co-founder and managing partner, will join Limeade’s board of directors. Limeade focuses on improving employee health and performance; its clients include Jamba Juice, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, REI, and Swedish Medical Center. In each of the past three years, Limeade said it has achieved more than 100% revenue growth. The company describes itself as an enterprise wellness platform that provides “a refreshing alternative to traditional, antagonistic wellness approaches.”

Presence Marking To Acquire Topline
Presence Marketing/Dynamic Presence (South Barrington, Ill.), a natural products brokerage, has signed a letter of intent to acquire Topline Marketing Inc. (South Portland, Maine). The offer was one-times revenues, according to a report in Natural Foods Merchandiser. “Karen Farrell, President and CEO of Topline, has put together a first-rate organization, which has performed at an exceptionally high level for many years now, building business in the North Atlantic, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic regions for a variety of leading companies,” wrote Bill Weiland, president and CEO of Presence Marketing, in his company’s October 2012 newsletter. “Their business has been focused primarily on nutrition/body care, but in recent years they have successfully built up a solid portfolio of food companies, with the same focused dedication and excellence they have afforded their NBC clients over the years.” The acquisition, the fifth for Presence Marketing, would add significant resources to its East region. Farrell will join the senior management team.

Healthier Pizza Companies Unite
Better For You Foods LLC (Delray Beach, Fla.), owner of the Better4U! brand of gluten-free and thin crust pizzas, has acquired A.C. LaRocco (Spokane, Wash.), a maker of healthier frozen pizzas made with natural ingredients. The combined company offers 15 varieties of better-for-you frozen pizza. “A.C. LaRocco has developed pizzas that taste great and are both Diabetic and Weight Watchers friendly," said Jack Lotker, Better For You Foods’ founder and CEO. The A.C. LaRocco’s website features a comparison page that pits nutritional facts against those of other natural and organic brands. According to Better For You Foods, the acquired brand is frequently recommended by health professionals.

Flowers Foods Cleared to Buy Earthgrains Bakery Brand
Flowers Foods Inc. (Thomasville, Ga.) announced that the U.S. Department of Justice has approved an agreement under which Flowers would acquire certain assets and trademark licenses from BBU Inc., a subsidiary of  Grupo Bimbo, one of the world’s largest bakeries. Financial terms were not disclosed, but Flowers will receive perpetual, exclusive and royalty-free licenses to the Sara Lee and Earthgrains brands for sliced breads, buns, and rolls in California, which together account for annual sales of approximately $134 million. Flowers also will receive such a license to the Earthgrains brand for certain fresh bakery products in the Oklahoma City area. Flowers is the second-largest producer and marketer of packaged bakery foods for retail and foodservice in the United States with 2011 sales of $2.8 billion; it has completed more than 100 acquisitions since listing publicly in 1968. Among the company's top brands are Nature's Own, Tastykake, and Mrs. Freshley's. Although the majority of its brands are conventional, its website states it was the first company to introduce a sugar-free bread, Nature’s Own Sugar-Free, in 1999. Earthgrains is made without colors, flavors, preservatives, or high fructose corn syrup and contains 100% natural ingredients, according to the brand’s website.

Aenova To Buy Temmler
The Aenova Group (Pahl, Germany) is to acquire Temmler Group (Marburg, Germany) for an undisclosed price. Aenova, which generates annual revenues of around €280 million, is a European provider of development, manufacturing, and marketing services for medicines and dietary supplements. Its portfolio consists of solid dosage forms, such as soft gelatin capsules, hard capsules, conventional tablets, film-coated tablets, and effervescent tablets. Temmler Group is an international pharmaceutical company and full service provider for pharmaceutical contract manufacturing. It has seven production sites in Europe and revenues of around €170 million. Equity for the transaction is being provided by funds advised by BC Partners, which acquired Aenova in August 2012.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News, October 26, 2012

Transactions
Bayer to Acquire Schiff Nutrition
Infinity Resources Merges with Earth911
Avrio Leads Investment in Baby Gourmet
Funding for Rooftop Farm
TherapeuticsMD Announces $8.5 Million Private Placement
Acquisition Creates Field-to-Consumer Supply Chain
Creative Edge Nutrition Acquires Chesapeake Nutraceuticals
Emmi Acquires Stake in German Organic Dairy
Nexira Acquires Cranberry Extract Manufacturer
Acquisition Provides Growth Platform for Value-Added Sweeteners
Legumex Acquires Keystone Grain
Roark Acquires Massage Envy Franchise
Performance Health Acquired by Gridiron Capital
Arla Expands to Become UK’s Largest Dairy
Cardium Announces the Acquisition of To Go Brands
NBTY Announces Debt Offering

Bayer to Acquire Schiff Nutrition International for $1.2 Billion
Bayer HealthCare LLC (Leverkusen, Germany) is set to acquire publicly traded Schiff Nutrition International Inc. (Salt Lake City, Utah), a leading U.S. supplement company, in a transaction valued at around $1.2 billion. Schiff’s best known brands include Move Free for joint health, MegaRed omega-3 for heart health, Schiff Vitamins, and Tiger’s Milk, a nutrition bar introduced in the 1960s.  Schiff generated net sales of $259 million in fiscal year ended May 31, 2012, and the company projected that net sales for FY2013 would rise 43%-46%, aided by the March 2012 acquisition of Airborne, maker of immunity-boosting effervescent tablets. “This transaction represents an excellent strategic fit for our HealthCare business,” said Dr. Marijn Dekkers, CEO of Bayer AG. “The Schiff business significantly enhances our presence and position in the United States, which accounts for more over-the-counter and nutritional products sales than any other country in the world.” Bayer HealthCare had annual sales of €17.2 billion in 2011; its Consumer Care vision is headquartered in Morristown, N.J. Bayer brands in the United States include One-A-Day and Flintstones vitamins. Schiff has its roots in Weider Nutrition International, an early player in sports nutrition which incorporated in 1996 and changed its name to Schiff Nutrition International in 2005. In 2010, TPG Growth purchased a 25% stake in Schiff Nutrition from Weider Health and Fitness, Schiff’s majority shareholder, for $48.8 million.

Infinity Resources Merges with Earth911
YouChange Holdings Corp. (Tempe, Ariz.), an electronics collection, e-waste tracking and re-commerce firm, has announced a merger with Earth911 Inc. (Scottsdale, Ariz.) and a name change to Infinity Resources Holdings Corp. Earth911 will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Infinity. Earth911 is a zero-waste lifestyle content publisher providing information about recycling and green living. The Earth911.com website expects to have more than 7.5 million visitors and 20 million page views in 2012. Earth911 also owns a 50% interest in Quest Resources Management Group LLC (Frisco, Texas). Quest designs and implements innovative recycling solutions for large and mid-sized corporations; it was listed on the 2012 Inc. 5000 list with 2011 revenues of $122 million. "Now that the merger is completed, we can focus on becoming a major factor in landfill diversion, an emerging market, through our partnership with Earth911 and Quest,” said YouChange founder, Jeffrey Rassas.

Avrio Leads Investment in Baby Gourmet
Baby Gourmet Foods Inc. (Edmonton, Alberta) has entered into a $1.75 million financing deal led by Avrio Capital Inc., with Scott Inglis, Sean Durfy, and Glen Wilson participating. Durfy, who previously served as president and CEO of West Jet, has been appointed executive chairman and interim CEO. Co-founded three years ago by sisters Jennifer Broe and Jill Vos, Baby Gourmet Foods provides organic baby food in re-sealable pouches. The company intends to expand its product line in Canada, launching Kids Gourmet for school-age children, and to extend into the U.S. market. Avrio is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Funding for Rooftop Farm
Lufa Farms (Montreal, Quebec), a commercial rooftop farm, has completed a $4.5 million financing led by Cycle Capital Management. Funds will be used to finance the construction of two more facilities in the greater Montreal area and expand into Toronto, Boston, New York, and Chicago. Lufa’s prototype farm is a 31,000-square-foot greenhouse on top of a Montreal office building. It is designed to provide the optimum growing environment for more than 25 varieties of vegetables without using artificial pesticides, fungicides or herbicides.  Also investing were the Kubo Greenhouse Project of the Netherlands and a former CEO of Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd., the world’s largest dairy producer.

TherapeuticsMD Announces $8.5 Million Private Placement
Publicly traded TherapeuticsMD Inc. (Boca Raton, Fla.), parent company of vitaMedMD LLC, a specialty pharmaceutical company, has entered into a definitive stock purchase agreement with accredited investors, which will result in gross proceeds of approximately $8.5 million. Funds will be used for trials related to investigational new drugs for menopause symptom relief. The company plans to begin Phase III trials as early as the first quarter of 2013. In the fourth quarter of this year, the company plans to launch three generic prescription prenatal vitamin products through its wholly owned subsidiary, BocaGreenMD Inc.

Acquisition Creates Field-to-Consumer Supply Chain
FoodLink (Los Gatos, Calif.), a buying platform connecting fresh food retailers and wholesalers, has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Trutrac (Salinas, Calif.), a provider of mobile traceability solutions to growers, harvesters, packers and shippers of fresh packed produce. According to FoodLink, the combined company will be the food industry’s first integrated network for tracing produce from crop planning and harvesting to the supermarket checkout line. The Produce Traceability Initiative (PTI) is a voluntary, industry-wide effort to help the fresh produce industry maximize the effectiveness of track-and-trace procedures while developing a standardized approach for future tracing systems. FoodLink said it does more than $10 billion in annual commerce and has more than 2,000 fresh food suppliers, brokers, and transportation carriers on its network.

Creative Edge Nutrition Acquires Chesapeake Nutraceuticals
Publicly traded Creative Edge Nutrition Inc. (Madison Heights, Mich.), a holding company and nutritional supplement company focused on active lifestyles, has acquired Chesapeake Nutraceuticals (Phoenix, Ariz.), a wholly owned subsidiary of SCD Enterprises. Chesapeake is a direct-to-consumer supplement company targeted at the aging demographic seeking quality of life. It has a customer base of 120,000. Other Creative Edge acquisitions include: Supplementstogo.com, A-z-nutrition.com, Science Defined Nutrition Inc., Sci-Fit Natures Science, and Innovative Fulfillment Corp. The board’s strategy is to “build a vertically integrated nutrition company that can conceptualize, create and sell direct to the consumer and for store-only brands while leveraging strategic distribution partners globally,” Bill Chaaban, chairman and CEO of Creative Edge, wrote in a recent letter to shareholders. “We are aggressively seeking other nutrition companies to consider for acquisitions.” A Goldman Small Cap Research report in September forecast $60 million in revenue for the company in FY13. In September the company announced the completed acquisition of the Sci-Fit and Nature's Science brands which “at peak” generated annual revenue of $10 million.

Emmi Acquires Stake in German Organic Dairy
The Biedermann dairy, an Emmi (Lucerne, Switzerland) subsidiary specializing in organic products, is entering into a strategic partnership with the German organic dairy Gläserne Molkerei by acquiring a 24% stake in the company. Gläserne Molkerei is a leading organic milk processor in Northeast Germany, with a premium range of milk, cheese, yogurt and other dairy products. The partnership is expected to significantly increase Emmi’s expertise in organic products and consolidate its position in Germany. Emmi is the largest processor of organic milk in Switzerland and had group net sales in 2011 of CHF 2.72 billion. Gläserne Molkerei, founded in 2001, generates sales of more than €80 million. The organic segment is growing consistently in all of Emmi's key markets, the company said.

Nexira Acquires Cranberry Extract Manufacturer
Nexira Group (Rouen, France) has acquired Tournay Biotechnologies (Lamothe-Montravel, France), a company involved in the extraction of active botanicals for the nutrition industry. Tournay Biotechnologies, a family-owned company founded in 1992, has an ISO 22000-certified manufacturing facility and a product portfolio led by Exocyan, a line of cranberry extracts standardized on proanthocyanidines (PACs) content. Nexira said the acquisition reinforces its positioning towards the health and wellness market, which will soon represent 35% of Nexira’s commercial activity. Nexira confirmed its growth target of €125 million in consolidated sales by 2015. Nexira is the new identity of the Iranex Group, which united with Bio Serae Labs and Colloides Naturels International under the Nexira name.

Acquisition Provides Growth Platform for Value-Added Sweeteners
Sweet Additions LLC (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.), an ingredient company that produces natural and organic sweeteners for food and beverage manufacturers, announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Sweet Additions Ingredient Processors, has acquired the assets of Primera Foods’ maltodextrin and syrup solids business. Terms were not disclosed. Primera’s facility in Cameron, Wis. produces natural and organic maltodextrins and syrup solids from rice, oats and tapioca under the RiceTrin and Tapi labels. “This acquisition will not only allow us to instantly expand our ingredient offering to include grain-based natural, organic and GMO-free starch derivatives, but gives us a tremendous platform for further growth into value added grain-based sweeteners,” said Ken Valdivia, president and CEO of Sweet Additions.

Legumex Acquires Keystone Grain
Legumex Walker Inc. (Winnipeg), one of Canada's largest processors and merchandisers of pulses and specialty crops, has completed the acquisition of Keystone Grain Ltd., a Manitoba-based processor and marketer of sunflowers, flax, specialty crops, and organic commodities for $1.28 million in cash and 587,437 in common shares. "We look forward to pursuing the new opportunities we have as one of North America's largest processors and marketers of sunflowers and related products to the growing bakery ingredients market, as well as opportunities afforded by our entry into the lucrative retail bird food market," said Joel Horn, president and CEO of Legumex Walker.

Roark Acquires Massage Envy Franchise
Roark Capital Group has acquired Massage Envy LLC (Scottsdale, Ariz.), a provider of professional massage therapy and facial treatments, from Sentinal Capital Partners. Massage Envy describes itself as “the national leader of affordable massage and spa services.” The franchise has more than 1.25 million members across 800 locations in 45 states. Sentinel purchased Massage Envy in January 2010, at which time the franchise was reported to have 600-plus clinics generating more than $450 million in annual systemwide sales.

Performance Health Acquired by Gridiron Capital
Gridiron Capital LLC has announced the acquisition of Performance Health and Wellness Holdings Inc. (Akron, Ohio), a designer, manufacturer, and marketer of branded rehabilitation, wellness, and dental products. Performance Health brands are sold in practitioner channels and at leading national retailers. Its multinational network of distribution partners extends into more than 60 countries. Key brands include Biofreeze pain reliever products, Thera-Band exercise products, Pedigenix foot care, and Prossage Heat soft tissue therapy. Performance Health was acquired in 2006 by The Hygenic Corporation, which traces its roots back to 1925. In 2007 an affiliate fund of the Cortec Group acquired a majority interest in Hygenic.

Arla Expands in the U.K.
Arla Foods (Aarhus, Denmark) and Milk Link (Bristol, U.K.) have been granted regulatory approval by the European Commission to merge, creating Britain’s leading dairy company with combined revenues in excess of £2 billion. Approval is subject to Arla implementing a remedy to address competition issues in the U.K.’s long life milk market. Arla Foods UK plc is home to the Cravendale, Lurpak, and Anchor brands. A merger between German Milch-Union Hocheifel and Arla has also been approved by the EU competition authorities, significantly increasing Arla’s activities in the German market. Arla, a farmer-owned co-op, is headquartered in Denmark and had net revenue of DKK 54.9 billion in 2011.

Cardium Announces the Acquisition of To Go Brands
Publicly traded Cardium Therapeutics (San Diego, Calif.) has announced that its MedPodium operating unit has acquired To Go Brands (San Diego, Calif.) in a stock transaction. To Go Brands recorded revenues of approximately $1.7 million for the first 6 months of 2012 and sells more than 25 brands, including fortified powder mixes, supplements and chews, antioxidant-rich drink mixes, and capsule-based dietary supplements. Its products are sold in FDM channels, in addition to Whole Foods, GNC and the Vitamin Shoppe. MedPodium has a portfolio of supplements, skin care products, and healthy lifestyle products.  "To Go Brands will coordinate Cardium's health sciences brand platform, including the MedPodium Nutra-Apps product line, as well as our strategic investment in SourceOne Global Partners, a leading supplier of science-based ingredients and proprietary formulas to the national supplement and functional food and beverage industries," stated Cardium CEO Christopher J. Reinhard.

NBTY Announces Debt Offering
NBTY Inc. (Ronkonkoma, NY), a vertically integrated manufacturer and marketer and retailer of dietary supplements, announced that its parent, Alphabet Holding Company Inc., intends to issue and sell contingent cash pay senior notes in a private placement valued at $500 million.  Net proceeds from the offering and cash on hand will be used to pay a cash dividend to shareholders of approximately $672 million and to pay associated fees, commissions, related expenses and credit agreement amendment consent fees. NBTY expects sales for fiscal year ended September 30, 2012 to be between $3.05 billion and $3.07 billion.


Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for September 29, 2012

Transactions
Ecover and Method Merge Green Cleaning Businesses
Snyder's Agrees to Acquire Snack Factory
Stevia Company Signs Financing Agreement
Naturex Acquires Decas Botanical
Syngenta to Acquire Pasteuria Bioscience
Edible Packaging Company Raises $10 Million
Avrio Closes Third Late Stage Venture Fund
Elizabeth Arden Announces Investment in Red Door Spa
BASF to Acquire Becker Underwood
Sustainable Seafood Labeling Gets Investment Boost
DSM Considers Cargill’s Cultures and Enzymes Business
Perrigo To Buy Sergeant’s Pet Care
North Castle Invests In Curves
Axellus To Strengthen Presence in Pharmacy Channel
TSI Purchases Yessamin of China
KeVita Probiotic Beverages Closes Series B Financing
SIPP Eco Beverage Closes Series A Round
LR Health & Beauty Attracts Bids
Branch Brook Invests in Kicking Horse Coffee
Teasdale Acquires Hoopeston Foods
Rainforest Beverage Attracts $3 Million Investment
$3.1 Million Investment for Blue River Technology
Jones Soda Delisted from NASDAQ
Amazon Herb Merges With TriVita

Ecover and Method Merge Green Cleaning Businesses
San Francisco Equity Partners (SFEP) has announced the sale of Method (San Francisco, Calif.), known for stylishly packaged eco-friendly household and personal care products, to Ecover (Malle, Belgium), a leading European manufacturer of green household cleaning products. The transaction will create the world’s largest green cleaning company, SFEP stated. Method’s sales approached $100 million last year. The combined company will employ around 300 staff and deliver projected sales of $200 million. “Ecover and Method will continue as separate brands with a shared ambition to bring as many new consumers as possible into the green cleaning and personal care market,” Ecover stated. Method was founded in 2000 by Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry.

Snyder's Agrees to Acquire Snack Factory
Snyder's-Lance Inc. (Charlotte, N.C.) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Snack Factory LLC (Princeton, N.J.), the maker of Pretzel Crisps, for $340 million in cash. This includes approximately $60 million of net present value of future tax benefits. The acquisition is expected to add approximately $160 million to estimated 2013 net revenue and to provide entry into the deli-bakery section of grocery stores. Snack Factory was founded in 2004 by Sara and Warren Wilson, who pioneered the first flat pretzel-shaped cracker under the Pretzel Crisps brand. Snyder's-Lance, which makes pretzels, cookies, tortilla chips, nuts and other snacks, was formed in December 2010 as a result of the merger of Lance Inc. and Snyder's of Hanover Inc. Net revenues for the year ended December 31, 2011, were $1.64 billion. Snack Factory is a portfolio company of private equity firm VMG Partners.

Stevia Company Signs Financing Agreement
Stevia Nutra Corp. (Corner Brook, Newfoundland), a company focused on stevia agronomics (including plant breeding, proprietary agricultural practices and post-harvest techniques), has entered into a financing agreement with Fairhills Capital Offshore Ltd. Fairhills will provide for a non-brokered financing arrangement of up to $3 million. The financing will be used to provide cash flow and support expansion in Southeast Asia. The World Health Organization estimates that stevia will replace up to 20% of the global sweetener market valued at over $10 billion, the company said. Citing Zenith International estimates, it noted that stevia agriculture production would have to triple within two years to meet demand.

Naturex Acquires Decas Botanical
Naturex (Avignon, France), a supplier of botanical extracts and plant-based ingredients, has acquired Decas Botanical Synergies (Carver, Mass.), a supplier of cranberry extracts and powders for the nutrition and pharmaceutical industries. Decas had revenues of $10 million in 2011 generated by an ingredients portfolio which includes proanthocyanidin (PAC) standardized powders and extracts, juice concentrate powders, and cold pressed seed oils. Naturex will hold 95% of the company and Decas CEO Doug Klaiber, 5%. The management team and corporate headquarters will be retained. Other acquisitions announced by Naturex in the last 12 months include Burgundy Botanical Extracts; Pektowin, a Polish maker of apple and citrus pectins and juice concentrates; and Valentine of India, a producer of fruit and vegetable powders and natural colors for the food industry. Naturex’s consolidated revenue for the first half of 2012 was €147.2 million, up 15% from the prior comparable period, reflecting a consolidation effect of 6.3%.

Syngenta to Acquire Pasteuria Bioscience
Global agricultural technology company Syngenta (Basel, Switzerland) has agreed to acquire Pasteuria Bioscience Inc. (Alachua, Fla.) for aggregate payments of $86 million, with additional deferred payments of up to $27 million. Since 2011 Syngenta and Pasteuria have had an exclusive global technology partnership to develop and commercialize biological products to control plant-parasitic nematodes using the naturally occurring soil bacteria Pasteuria spp. “Pasteuria Bioscience has developed critical knowhow for in vitro production of Pasteuria, enabling commercial scale manufacturing,” said John Atkin, COO of Syngenta. The first product will be a seed treatment for soybean cyst nematode to be launched in 2014. Pasteuria Bioscience was founded in 2003 in the University of Florida’s Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator where it remains headquartered.

Edible Packaging Company Raises $10 Million
WikiCell Designs Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.), a developer of edible forms of food and beverage packaging, has closed a $10 million Series A financing co-led by Flagship Ventures and Polaris Venture Partners. "WikiCell Designs was created to turn food and beverage packaging from plastic toward all-natural forms, protecting products much as nature does, and eliminating the need for protective materials that are potentially harmful to human health and the environment. This approach has the potential to fundamentally change the way food is packaged and consumed," said WikiCell Designs co-founder David Edwards, a professor at Harvard University and founder of ArtScience Labs. Co-founder and CEO of WikiCell Robert Connelly previously led the biotechnology company Pulmatrix (also founded by Edwards), a clinical stage biotechnology company working on inhaled therapeutics.

Avrio Closes Third Late Stage Venture Fund
Avrio Capital Inc. has announced the second closing of its third institutional late stage venture fund, Avrio Ventures Limited Partnership II. With total commitments of $91 million, the fund will continue to focus on the agricultural and food sectors, investing in innovative companies that offer solutions to global challenges in health, wellness, and sustainability. New investors contributing to the Avrio II fund include Alberta Investment Management Corp., Alberta Enterprise Corp., and GWD Investments. Both Export Development Canada and Farm Credit Canada have re-invested. Avrio is an NCN Cornerstone Investor member.

Elizabeth Arden Announces Investment in Red Door Spa
Elizabeth Arden Inc. (New York, N.Y.) has partnered with J.H. Anderson Holdings Inc. and its principal John Anderson to collectively invest $12 million for a minority interest in Red Door Spa Holdings, with an option to acquire the remaining interest. Red Door Spa Holdings (Phoenix, Ariz.), the operator of the Elizabeth Arden Red Door Spas and the Mario Tricoci Hair Salons, is a privately held company backed by health and wellness investor North Castle Partners. E. Scott Beattie, chairman, president and CEO of Elizabeth Arden, commented, "Our intent in partnering with John Anderson and North Castle Partners is to accelerate the growth of the spa business in parallel with the growth of the Elizabeth Arden brand and the Elizabeth Arden brand repositioning.”

BASF to Acquire Becker Underwood
BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany) plans to acquire Becker Underwood (Ames, Iowa) from Norwest Equity Partners for $1.02 billion. Becker Underwood is a global provider of technologies for biological seed treatment, biological crop protection, turf and horticulture products and animal nutrition. Becker Underwood has 10 production sites worldwide and 479 employees; it has been a portfolio company of Norwest Equity since 2004. Becker Underwood is expected to generate sales of $240 million for fiscal year 2012 ending September 30.

Sustainable Seafood Labeling Gets Investment Boost
The Walton Family Foundation, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and the Skoll Foundation have announced a $10.85 million investment in the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) through September 2015, with the goal of continuing to build the global market for sustainable seafood. The multi-year grants demonstrate a continuing commitment to MSC's certification and ecolabeling program. Today, more than 16,000 products in 86 countries bear the MSC logo compared to 500 products in 2007. There are currently 287 fisheries either certified or in assessment. The MSC was founded in 1997 by the World Wildlife Fund and Unilever and became an independent nonprofit in 1999.

DSM Considers Cargill’s Cultures and Enzymes Business
Royal DSM (Heerlen Netherlands) is in exclusive discussions with Cargill Inc. (Minneapolis, Minn.) concerning the acquisition of its global cultures and enzymes business. Cargill is a global manufacturer of cultures and enzymes for the dairy and meat industries with manufacturing operations in Wisconsin and France. The business has some 200 employees and generates net sales for Cargill of approximately €45 million annually. The global market for cultures and enzymes is valued at over €1 billion, growing at more than 5% per annum, DSM said. This would be DSM’s eighth acquisition in its Nutrition cluster since its corporate strategy for growth was announced in September 2010. DSM and Cargill are both NCN Cornerstone Investors.

Perrigo To Buy Sergeant’s Pet Care
Perrigo Company (Allegan, Mich.), one of the world's largest manufacturers of OTC pharmaceutical products for the store brand market, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Sergeant's Pet Care Product Inc. (Omaha, Neb.) for approximately $285 million in cash. Perrigo expects to receive an estimated tax benefit of approximately $50 million as a result of the acquisition. Sergeant’s, a manufacturer of OTC pet healthcare products, is forecast to generate over $140 million in sales during its fiscal year ending September 30, 2012. "This acquisition allows us to penetrate the pet care category by offering numerous flea and tick, health and well-being and consumable products to pet owners at affordable prices,” said Perrigo Chairman and CEO Joseph C. Papa. “This is a first step in executing on our strategy to expand our Consumer Healthcare portfolio into pet care." Pet care is an $8 billion industry that has shown consistent growth through economic cycles, Perrigo stated.

North Castle Invests In Curves International
North Castle Partners has completed an investment in Curves International Inc. (Waco, Texas), a global fitness franchise with approximately 7,300 clubs for women. Terms were not disclosed. “We are excited to partner with the company's founders, Gary and Diane Heavin, to reinvigorate this world renowned company by applying our knowledge and experience in fitness and wellness from our current and prior investments, including International Fitness, Equinox Fitness, EAS and Octane Fitness," said Chip Baird, North Castle's founder and managing partner.

Axellus To Strengthen Presence in Pharmacy Channel
Axellus AS (Oslo, Norway), a supplier and marketer of dietary supplements and health products in the Nordic region, has entered into an agreement to purchase Gevita AS (Oslo, Norway) from Euromedica Holding AS, strengthening its focus on the pharmacy sector in Norway and Sweden. The purchase price was not disclosed. Gevita was established in 1998 and sells dietary supplements to the pharmacy channel, generating total sales of approximately NOK 29 million in 2011. “The pharmacy channel in Norway and Sweden is growing and is increasingly perceived by consumers as an important arena for buying dietary supplements,” said Axellus Group CEO Stig Ebert Nilssen. In February 2012, Axellus announced the take over of Denomega from Borregaard to strengthen its investment in marine oils. In 2011, Axellus Group had total sales of NOK 1,262 million. Axellus is part of Orkla Brands Nordic.

TSI Purchases Yessamin of China
TSI Group (Missoula, Mont.) has finalized the purchase of Yessamin Health Company Ltd., a Norwegian-invested contract manufacturing facility in Nanton, Jiangsu Province, China, according to China Updates, a news service of the U.S.-China Health Products Assn. Yessamin is a contract manufacturer of packaging, tablets, gelatin and vegetarian capsules, and softgels for dietary supplements, primarily serving Scandinavian markets, in addition to China. TSI already owns manufacturing facilities and Q/C infrastructure in China. “We strategically positioned ourselves to serve customers looking for a reliable Asian manufacturing partner to produce products that support brands entering the emerging Chinese market,” said Larry Kolb, managing director of TSI Group’s innovation products division.

KeVita Probiotic Beverages Closes Series B Financing
KeVita Inc. (Ventura, Calif.), a maker of sparkling probiotic beverages, has closed a Series B financing round led by KarpReilly Investments LLC. The company’s probiotic drinks feature a water-based, kefir-derived probiotic culture and four strains of live probiotics. Other ingredients include coconut water, tea, or reverse osmosis purified water and organic cold-pressed plant extracts and fruit purees. KeVita is made in the company's certified organic facility in Southern California. "As experienced investors in the consumer space, we look for fast-growing brands with outstanding differentiated products," said Allan Karp, of KarpReilly. Investment bank Silverwood Partners acted as the exclusive financial advisor to KeVita in the transaction and Kevita was a presenting company at NCN X in May 2012.

SIPP Eco Beverage Closes Series A Round
SIPP Eco Beverage Co. Inc. (Philadelphia), maker of organic sparkling drinks, has closed on a Series A financing round from Emil Capital Partners. SIPP beverages contain organic ingredients sweetened with agave nectar and are available in Ginger Blossom, Mojo Berry, and Honey Pear, with new flavors pending. This transaction marks Emil Capital’s third beverage investment in 2012; earlier this year, it led the equity raise to become the largest shareholder in Cheribundi (Cherry Pharm Inc.), a manufacturer of tart cherry juice products. Emil Capital also led a Series A financing round for Balance Water Inc., a maker of functional beverages with Australian flower essences. CherryPharm and Balance Water were presenting companies at NCN Investor Meetings in 2009 and 2011, respectively.

LR Health & Beauty Attracts Bids
Private equity group Apax has received tentative bids for its direct sales company LR Health & Beauty Systems (Ahlen, Germany), Reuters has reported. LR Health and Beauty Systems is an international direct sales company specializing in cosmetics and nutrition products. LR Health & Beauty last year posted EBITDA of roughly €40 million and sales of €230 million, according to Reuters’ sources.

Branch Brook Invests in Kicking Horse Coffee
Branch Brook Holdings, LLC, a strategic partnership between Swander Pace Capital, Jefferson Capital Partners, and United Natural Foods, has chosen Kicking Horse Coffee Co. Ltd. (Invermere, B.C.) for its first investment. Branch Brook was formed in April 2012 to invest in organic and natural consumer product companies based in North America. Kicking Horse Coffee Co. Ltd is an organic, fair-trade coffee roaster founded in 1996; co-founder, Elana Rosenfeld will remain a shareholder and chief executive officer.

Teasdale Acquires Hoopeston Foods
Teasdale Quality Foods Inc. (Atwater, Calif.), a manufacturer of Hispanic foods and a large producer and marketer of canned hominy and beans, has acquired Hoopeston Foods Inc. (Burnsville, Minn.), a producer of conventional and organic canned dried beans.  Terms were not disclosed. Teasdale is a portfolio company of a private equity fund affiliated with Palladium Equity Partners LLC, a firm with a special focus on the U.S. Hispanic marketplace. Hoopeston was founded in 1995 with the acquisition from Pillsbury Foods of the Joan of Arc production plant in Hoopeston. Hoopeston’s facility is USDA Organic, QAI Organic, and kosher certified.

Rainforest Beverage Attracts $3 Million Investment
Runa LLC (Brooklyn, N.Y.), the seller of a bottled herbal beverage called guayusa made from the leaves of a tree found in the Amazonian region of Ecuador, has received a $3 million round of financing from a variety of investors, according to Bevnet. Guayusa tea is a traditional drink of the indigenous peoples of Ecuador. It contains the same amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee and twice the antioxidants of green tea but has no tannins so lacks the astringency or bitterness of green or black teas, according to the company. Runa works with more than 800 indigenous farmers, and its beverages are organic and fair trade certified. Swiss-based responsAbility Social Investments fund participated in the round, Bevnet reported. Fair trade is one of the fastest-growing sectors worldwide with global annual sales of around $5 billion and annual growth rates averaging 35%, responsAbility concluded earlier this year: “In the current low-interest-rate environment, fair trade investments can be an attractive alternative for investors looking for a low correlation to the financial markets and little volatility.”

$3.1 Million Investment for Blue River Technology
Blue River Technology (Sunnyvale, Calif.), a company developing computer vision technology and robotics for agriculture, has raised $3.1 million in Series A funding led by Khosla Ventures. Founded in 2011 by two Stanford University alumni, Blue River Technology is using computer vision techniques to identify weeds and selectively kill unwanted plants. The equipment is “particularly well suited to organic agriculture and for fields with chemical-resistant weeds,” the company said. The technology has the potential to reduce the cost of growing organic produce since it could replace the need for weeding by hand. Proceeds are earmarked for growing the company’s engineering team and accelerating product development.

Jones Soda Delisted from NASDAQ
With shares trading below the minimum price of $1 per share, Jones Soda Co. has been delisted from the NASDAQ exchange. Instead the company’s shares will trade on the OTCQB Marketplace exchange. Jones’ shares peaked at more than $30 in 2007; revenues fell from $39.8 million that year to $17.4 million in 2011, the Seattle Times business section reported on September 17.

Amazon Herb Merges With TriVita
Amazon Herb Company (Jupiter, Fla.) has merged with TriVita (Scottsdale, Ariz.), the direct selling company that distributes Nopalea, an anti-inflammatory wellness drink made from the fruit of the Nopal cactus. Amazon Herb was founded in 1990 by John Easterling to help recognize the health benefits of Amazon rainforest botanicals. Its products include Zamu, a wellness beverage made with organic camu camu berry, in addition to skin care and nutritional products. John and his wife, the singer and actress Olivia Newton-John, will work with TriVita post-merger. Founded in 1999, TriVita expanded into 10 new countries in 2011 and was recognized in 2012 as No. 70 on the Global 100 list of top direct-selling companies published by Direct Selling News.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

NCN News for September 7, 2012

Transactions
Kraft To Sell Big Slice of Back to Nature
Naturally Nora Joins MOM Brands
Church & Dwight Buys Gummy Vitamin Company
Recycling Company Partners With York Plains
Hain Agrees to Buy U.K. Jam and Spread Business From Premier Foods
YogaWorks Attracts Loan From Avidbank
Flavours Inc. Receives Investment
Network Marketer Registers for IPO
Financial Group Acquires Mamma’s Best
Fiore Capital Invests In Alter Eco
Organic E-Grocer Raises $2 Million
Smart Lunches Raises $1 Million Series A Investment
EcoScraps Receives $250,000 Grant
Exercise Franchise Bar Method Attracts Investment
Management Buyout for Skin Care Company

Kraft To Sell Big Slice of Back to Nature
Kraft Foods Inc. (Northfield, Ill.) is planning to sell a majority stake in its Back to Nature natural & organic foods brand to Brynwood Partners VI LP for an undisclosed amount. A joint venture will be formed between the two companies, with Kraft maintaining a substantial minority stake in the business, said to be between a quarter and a half, according to an article on Dow Jones Newswire. "This deal has a unique structure where a large consumer company like Kraft Foods has identified a way to partner with a specialist like Brynwood Partners to increase growth of a non-core asset while maintaining a significant financial interest," said Brynwood Senior Managing Partner Henk Hartong III. Brynwood has a track record of reviving smaller businesses divested by large corporations, including Kretschmer wheat germ (acquired from PepsiCo) and Balance Bar (acquired from Kraft). Back to Nature cereal and granola was founded in 1960 by Organic Milling Inc. (San Dimas, Calif.), which posted revenues of nearly $10 million for the brand in 2002. It was acquired by Kraft in 2003 for an undisclosed sum. Today, annual sales of Back to Nature, which also makes cookies, crackers and packaged meals, are between $50 million and $75 million, according to the Dow Jones article. The decision to sell Back to Nature precedes Kraft’s October split into two companies, one for snacks and the other for groceries.

Naturally Nora Joins MOM Brands
MOM Brands (Lakeville, Minn.) has acquired Naturally Nora (Princeton, N.J.), a maker of natural cake, frosting, brownie and cookie mixes. Nora and Steven Schultz, the acquired company’s founders, will join the MOM Brands’ senior management team. Production, sales and distribution operations of the Naturally Nora baking business will not be immediately affected by the change in ownership. MOM Brands natural cereals include Three Sisters, Mom’s Best, Bear River Valley, and Sally’s brands. Naturally Nora was a presenting company at the NCN VI Investor Meeting in New York in Spring 2010.

Church & Dwight Buys Gummy Vitamin Company
Church & Dwight Co. (Princeton, N.J.), maker of Arm & Hammer baking soda, has announced it will buy supplement maker Avid Health Inc. (Vancouver, Wash.) for $650 million in cash. Avid Health’s Northwest Natural Products business makes gummy-style vitamins including Vitafusion and L'il Critters, leading brands in the adult and children’s gummy vitamins categories, respectively. Avid Health is also the parent company of Nutrition Now, which makes the Rhino brand of nutritional gummies and chewables. Founded in 2005, Avid’s net sales for the trailing 12 months through June 30, 2012 were approximately $230 million. Post integration, annual cost savings of approximately $15 million are anticipated in 2014. The deal “brings to our Company a new growth platform in one of the fastest-growing segments of the attractive vitamin/mineral/supplement category. It is also consistent with our strategy of strengthening our business by adding #1 or #2 brands in areas of high growth potential,” said James R. Craigie, chairman and CEO of Church & Dwight.

Recycling Company Partners With York Plains
Totally Green Inc. (Tulsa, Okla.), which provides organic food processing systems and compostable packaging alternatives, has partnered with York Plains Investment Corp. for a program that involves both financing and a new marketing model for Totally Green’s ORCA Green Machine. The ORCA offers to commercial kitchens and food processing facilities an alternative to land fill disposal by digesting up to 2,400 pounds of food waste daily and turning it into a nutrient-rich liquid. York Plains has agreed to provide $5 million of equity financing for a 50% interest in the company and up to $15 million in equipment financing for the roll out of the company’s new service program.

Proposed Sale of Leading U.K. Jams and Spreads to Hain
Premier Foods (St. Albans, U.K.) has reached a conditional agreement to sell its sweet spreads and jellies business to Hain Daniels Group for £200 million in cash and shares, subject to approval. For the year ended 31 December 2011, sales of the business being sold were £165 million, of which 59% were of branded goods. Brands include Hartley’s, one of Britain’s most popular jams; a portfolio of marmalades (Robertson’s, Frank Cooper, Keiller); Sun-Pat, a leading brand of peanut butter in the U.K.; and Gales, the second largest honey brand. Irwin Simon, Hain’s founder and president and CEO of Hain Celestial Group, noted that that in order to become the largest healthy food company in the United Kingdom, the company “needed to expand into Ambient Grocery where we have seen health and nutrition gain traction with consumers.” Rob Burnett, CEO of Hain Daniels, said in a Q4 earnings call: “The acquisition of market leading grocery brands from Premier really establishes the Hain Daniels business in the U.K. as a scale player across all sectors fresh, chilled, frozen and now ambient grocery.”  He added: “We believe we can modernize the portfolio and make it more relevant today with a relatively uncomplicated new product development.” Hain Celestial Group’s net sales reached a record $1.378 billion for fiscal year ended June 30, 2012, up 24.3%. Almost a year ago Hain Celestial Group acquired Daniels Group in the United Kingdom, a maker of chilled natural foods and beverages, for approximately $230 million.

YogaWorks Attracts Loan From Avidbank
Avidbank Corporate Finance, a division of Avidbank, has provided YogaWorks (Los Angeles, Calif.) with a $1.5 million term loan, with proceeds to be used to open additional studios in California and New York. YogaWorks is developing a nationally branded chain of alternative health fitness centers. Its network of 23 studios in California and New York offers a range of yoga and Pilates classes, workshops, retreats, teacher training, and retail services. YogaWorks said it offers more than 1,700 classes per week, serving 85,000 active students.

Flavours Inc. Receives Investment
Excellere Partners (Denver, Colo.) has announced a strategic equity investment in Flavours Inc. (Yorba Linda, Calif.), a developer and contract manufacturer of organic, natural and healthy beverages and snack foods. “The addition of more resources, including both human and financial capital, will allow Flavours to continue building upon our core competencies of product development, flavorings and aseptic co-packing services,” said Joshua Cua, CEO and founder of Flavours. “With our existing capabilities in high-acid (juice-based) aseptic packaging, we are excited to soon be able to provide our customers with aseptic packaging for low-acid (milk-based) products as well.” Flavours was founded in 2003.

Network Marketer Registers for IPO
FVA Ventures Inc. (Troy, Mich.) has filed a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a potential initial public offering of Class A common stock. FVA will be renamed ViSalus Inc. in connection with the IPO. ViSalus is a direct-to-consumer health product company offering branded weight management products, nutritional supplements, and energy drinks to customers in the United States and Canada through a network marketing model. ViSalus is a majority owned subsidiary of publicly traded Blyth Inc., which would still own more than 50% of ViSalus following the IPO. Blyth markets home fragrance products and decorative accessories. FVA Ventures had net sales of $327.3 million and adjusted EBITDA of $55.2 million for the six months ended June 30, 2012.

Financial Group Acquires Mamma’s Best
Versant International Inc. (Newport Beach, Calif.), a financial holding company, has acquired the natural & organic foods maker Mamma's Best LLC (Irvine, Calif.), a company founded by three sisters inspired by their mother’s cooking. The company’s organic barbeque sauces, marinades, soups and spreads are available at Sprouts, Whole Foods, and specialty grocers. "We are thrilled to acquire such an innovative, health conscious, food company," said Versant Chairman and CEO Glen W. Carnes.

Fiore Capital Invests In Alter Eco
Fiore Capital Corporation has made a significant investment in Alter Eco (San Francisco, Calif.), becoming its largest shareholder. Alter Eco is a specialty food company that sources exclusively from small-scale farmers in 11 countries. The farming cooperatives are selected based on economic, social and environmental criteria. Alter Eco’s 26 SKUs include quinoa from the Bolivian Andes; heirloom jasmine rice from Thailand; Latin American grown, Swiss-made dark chocolate; and unrefined ground mascobado sugar from the Philippines. The investment will be used to fund growth initiatives.

Organic E-Grocer Raises $2 Million
The e-grocer Door to Door Organics (Boulder, Colo.) has raised a $2 million Series A round investment from Greenmont Capital. Now in its seventh year, Door to Door says it offers one of the largest grocery delivery networks of any e-grocer in the country, with operations in Colorado, Illinois, Missouri, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. The company said it’s focused on integrating the best e-grocery experience into its organic food delivery business, including planning, shopping, and cooking tools. “The consumer dynamic is shifting rapidly, and Door to Door Organics is building a compelling solution for the informed, health-conscious consumer who wants to be inspired in the kitchen,” said Greenmont Capital Partner David Haynes.

Smart Lunches Raises $1 Million Series A Investment
Smart Lunches (Boston, Mass.), an Internet-based provider of healthy meals for children, has closed a Series A investment round securing over $1 million in additional capital. Smart Lunches partners with schools, daycare centers, and camps to serve fresh, nutritious meals that parents can order online 24 hours a day. Meals are delivered free. Funding will be used to expand into new regions and market categories. Smart Lunches recently completed its first acquisition, Smart Snax, a three-year-old healthy food vending machine business operating in Greater Boston. Smart Lunches was founded by Scott Savitz, a general partner of Data Point Capital. Smart Lunches said that investors included Data Point; Jonathan Kraft, president of the Kraft Group; and Lon Chow, general partner of Apex Venture Partners.

EcoScraps Receives $250,000 Grant
EcoScraps (Salt Lake City, Utah), a provider of organic, chemical- and manure-free lawn and garden products, has received $250,000 from Chase and LivingSocial as part of a grant program designed to increase awareness of the important role small businesses play in local communities. “This grant will help EcoScraps create more jobs, repurpose more food waste and produce more compost products,” said EcoScraps CEO and co-founder Dan Blake. The company is currently turning 100 tons of produce waste each day from grocery stores into compost and other lawn and garden products. Other grant recipients included UsedCardboardBoxes.com, Bright Power, and Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream.

Exercise Franchise Attracts Investment
The Bar Method (San Francisco, Calif.), a barre-based exercise regime, has announced an equity investment from Mainsail Partners to support the growth of its franchise. Mainsail is the sole Series A investor in the business founded by Burr Leonard, who will continue as Bar Method’s CEO. The Bar Method and its franchisees operate more than 60 exercise studios in North America and sell branded fitness apparel, exercise equipment, and home-workout DVDs. The Bar Method combines interval training, isometrics, and dance conditioning.

Management Buyout for Skin Care Company
Prairie Capital has partnered with the senior management team of Swiss-American Products Inc. (Carrollton, TX) to complete a management buyout of Swiss-American from the founder. Swiss-American develops, manufactures, and markets skin and wound care products. The company operates three business segments: EltaMD, which sells branded skin care products to dispensing physicians through its direct sales force; Elta Medical, which sells branded skin and wound care products to medical facilities; and private label and contract manufacturing services to medical device and drug companies.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for August 17, 2012

Transactions
Dean Foods to Spin Off WhiteWave
Wellness Center USA Buys Brain Health Company
Gluten-Free QRUNCH Closes First Round
Bayer Acquires Biological Pest Management Company
Annie’s Announces Secondary Offering
Third Round for Prosperity Organic Foods
UL Environment Acquires GoodGuide
DSM Acquires Animal Supplements Company in Brazil
Full Motion Beverage Diversifies into Sports Nutrition
24 Hour Fitness Sells Asia Business
Mycell Technologies Announces $10 Million Financing
Jel Sert Buys Functional Beverage Brands From Solis

Dean Foods to Spin Off WhiteWave
Dean Foods (Dallas) is planning to spin off its WhiteWave Foods Co. subsidiary through an IPO. It expects to raise about $300 million from selling 20% of WhiteWave, which sells Horizon Organic dairy products and the Alpro and Silk soymilk and dairy-alternative brands. According to an SEC filing, WhiteWave generated total net sales of $2 billion in the year ended December 31, 2011, up from $1.2 billion in 2007, for a CAGR of 13.6%. As the IPO filing stated, plant-based foods and beverages represented a $1.6 billion category in the United States and Europe in 2011, with a CAGR of 8% in 2009-2011; almond-based beverages were among the fastest growing subcategories in the U.S. consumer packaged food industry with a CAGR of 157%. Organic milk represented $1 billion in U.S. sales in 2011 with a CAGR of 9% for that period. Dean Foods acquired Silk soymilk in 2002, Horizon Organic in 2004, and Alpro in 2009. Expected business benefits from the spin off were described as: market recognition of the value of the WhiteWave businesses, focused management attention, improved access to capital, and better ability to pursue strategic acquisitions.

Wellness Center USA Buys Brain Health Company
Publicly traded Wellness Center USA Inc. (Schaumburg, Ill.), a healthcare and supplement company, announced that it has completed the acquisition of CNS-Wellness LLC (Tampa, Fla.). The cognitive neuroscience company specializes in the treatment of brain-based behavioral health disorders without the use of drugs. CNS has developed a real-time brain mapping assessment and treatment system for disorders ranging from anxiety, depression and bipolar disorder to developmental disabilities and conditions such as AH/HD and epilepsy. Interventions include stimulation and interactive EEG-based feedback software to retrain the brain. The two companies expect to establish clinical practice facilities nationwide beginning Q4 2012. The acquisition was made through a share exchange transaction. Another Wellness Center business is aminofactory.com, an online market place for amino acid based nutritional supplements.

Gluten-Free QRUNCH Closes First Round, Kicks Off Second
QRUNCH Foods (Denver, Colo.), maker of quinoa-based burgers and other gluten-free foods, has closed its first round of angel funding for an undisclosed amount. “With the tremendous support of both conventional and natural retailers in the Rocky Mountain region, we have established a solid foundation for national expansion that will be fueled by this seed capital,” said CEO Jim Adams. QRUNCH burgers are available in natural and conventional chains such as Whole Foods, Natural Grocer, King Soopers and most recently, Wegmans. The company is now seeking to raise an additional $1.2 million and said it had already secured several investors in this second round.

Bayer Acquires Biological Pest Management Company
Bayer CropScience (Monheim, Germany) signed an agreement in July to purchase AgraQuest Inc. (Davis, Calif.) for $425 million plus milestone payments. AgraQuest is a global supplier of biological pest management solutions based on natural microorganisms. Bayer CropScience said the acquisition would enable it to build a leading technology platform for green products and to strengthen its fruits and vegetables business. “The growing fruits and vegetables market, which today accounts for more than 25 percent of our sales, is of strategic importance for us. We plan to achieve €3 billion sales in this segment by 2020, and with the acquisition of AgraQuest we are underlining our growth ambitions,” said Sandra Peterson, CEO of Bayer CropScience.

Annie’s Announces Secondary Offering
Annie's Inc. (Berkeley, Calif.), the natural and organic food company that raised $95 million from the sale of 5 million shares at $19 each in its March 2012 IPO, has announced another offering of roughly 3.17 million shares of common stock.  Priced at $39.25 per share, the stock is to be sold exclusively by participating stockholders, with a 30-day option for an additional 476,084 shares. Annie's will not receive any proceeds from the sale. After the offering, funds advised by Solera Capital LLC will hold approximately 40% voting power. From 2002 to 2005, Solera made several significant equity investments in the company, acquiring control and providing capital for internal growth and acquisitions. Best known for its bunny logo and organic macaroni and cheese in a box, Annie’s reported net sales of $141.3 million for fiscal 2012, an increase of 20.1% over the prior year.

Third Round for Prosperity Organic Foods
Prosperity Organic Foods Inc. (Boise, Idaho) has closed its third round of financing, securing funds needed to expand distribution of its debut product line, Rich & Creamy Melt Organic buttery spreads. The round was led by investors from the Boise Angel Alliance, Frontier Angel Fund and the Sun Valley area. Melt spreads are made from fruit- and plant-based organic oils, including virgin coconut, flaxseed, hi-oleic sunflower, palm fruit, and canola. Following a feature in March on the Dr. Oz Show, the company was able to accelerate its regional expansion to a national rollout. “The successful closure of our Series A-1 round enables us to move ahead more aggressively with our 2012 plans,” said CEO Meg Carlson.

UL Environment Acquires GoodGuide
UL Environment (Marietta, Ga.), a business unit of Underwriters Laboratories, announced the acquisition of GoodGuide (San Francisco, Calif.), a source of information on the health, environmental, and social impacts of consumer products. GoodGuide's data platform, which includes web and mobile interfaces, enables manufacturers and retailers to meet growing consumer demand for transparency in product information. "We are committed to helping the entire product value chain make healthy and green purchasing decisions," said Sara Greenstein, president of UL Environment. "GoodGuide strengthens our ability to deliver on that commitment."

DSM Acquires Animal Supplements Company in Brazil
Royal DSM of the Netherlands has agreed to acquire Tortuga Companhia Zootécnica Agrária of Brazil for about €465 million in cash. Depending on 2012 EBITDA results, an adjustment increase in the purchase price up to about €490 million could be made. Tortuga makes nutritional supplements for pasture raised beef and dairy cattle. It has three production sites in Brazil and anticipated net sales of about €385 million for 2012. The size of the global market for nutritional supplements for ruminants is estimated well in excess of €4 billion, growing by around 3% per year with significantly stronger growth (7-10%) in organic trace minerals (chelates), according to DSM. Tortuga’s main business is in organic trace minerals.  This is DSM’s seventh acquisition in the Nutrition cluster since it announced in September 2010 a corporate strategy to drive focused growth.

Full Motion Beverage Diversifies into Sports Nutrition
Full Motion Beverage Inc. (Melville, N.Y), a new age beverage company, has agreed to acquire the assets of WM Holdings LLC, maker of GX Supplements (Milford, Conn.). GX brands include the GN.O. Plasma pre-workout supplement and Rebuild meal replacement and will form the cornerstone of the Full Motion sports supplements line. In addition to the brands, Full Motion will acquire a warehouse and distribution operation and retail outlet. “This is a great start to the diversification of Full Motion and our product offerings,” said CFO Darren Cioffi.

24 Hour Fitness Sells Asia Business
24 Hour Fitness (San Ramon, Calif.) has sold its California Fitness clubs, located throughout Asia, to The Ansa Group, including 18 clubs in Hong Kong, Singapore and China. Financial terms were not disclosed. California Fitness was acquired by 24 Hour Fitness in 1999. The sale will enable 24 Hour Fitness to focus on U.S. operations, the company stated. Forstmann Little & Co. acquired 24 Hour Fitness in 2005 in a $1.6 billion leveraged buyout. During this period, 24 Hour Fitness’ membership has grown from 2.8 million to nearly 4 million at more than 400 clubs nationwide. 24 Hour Fitness also operates a nutritional supplement company, Apex Fitness Group.

Mycell Technologies Announces $10 Million Financing
Mycell Technologies LLC (Paramus, N.J.), an intellectual property and investment holding company specializing in the development of proprietary liquid formulations of concentrated omega-3 ingredients, has closed an institutional non-controlling minority investment of $10 million. Terms and the identity of the strategic institutional investor were not disclosed. "We are now positioned for extraordinary growth at Mycell Technologies and Oceans Omega, our flagship ingredient subsidiary," said Benjamin D. Mamola, chairman and CEO. Oceans Omega LLC is a supplier of stabilized omega-3 EPA/DHA ingredients to the food and beverage markets.

Jel Sert Buys Functional Beverage Brands From Solis
The Jel Sert Company (West Chicago, Ill.), a consumer packaged foods manufacturer selling powdered soft drinks, freezer bars, dessert mixes and ready-to-drink beverages, has acquired the Super C, Pure Kick and Zoic functional beverage brands from Solis Brands Inc. (Altamonte Springs, Fla.). Jel Sert will assume responsibility for sales and distribution of the three brands. Founded in 1926, Jel Sert said the acquisition fits its strategy of expanding into the health & wellness business. Solis was founded in 2006.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for August 2, 2012

Transactions
Athletes’ Performance Raises $22.5 Million
Harvest Power Raises Additional $15 Million
EcoScraps Raises $1.5 Million in Series A Funding
5-Hour Energy Sells $450 Million in Private Placement
Aseptic Solutions Fits Glanbia’s Integration Plans
NatureShare Raises $1.5 Million for Apps
Natural Grocers IPO Raises $107 Million
Big Tree Farms Raises $1 Million for Superfoods Business
Alberta Enterprise Invests in Avrio Ventures II
Merrill Hits Globesity Investment “Megatrend”
Jack & Jake's Attracts Socially Conscious Investor
Nestlé Invests in Medical Food for Alzheimer’s
LycoRed Acquires Beta Carotene Business
Smoothie King Sold, Receives Investment for Growth
Humana and KaBOOM! Build Playgrounds for Health

Athletes’ Performance Raises $22.5 Million
Athletes’ Performance (Phoenix, Ariz.), a provider of performance training, nutrition and physical therapy for elite athletes, military and corporations, has announced a $22.5 million investment by ABS Capital Partners, which joins the company’s initial investor Polaris Venture Partners. “The Core Performance business is well positioned to capitalize on companies’ increased focus on proactive wellness programs that can improve employee productivity and retention, while reducing the cost of healthcare and absenteeism,” said ABS Managing General Partner John Stobo, who will join the board of directors. Core Performance programs incorporate web-based instruction and results tracking, onsite fitness centers, and health and wellness coaches. “Historically, while industry research has shown that corporate health centers can offer employers an immediate savings of 10 to 30 percent on healthcare costs, engagement and quantifiable results have been lacking. We have been able to demonstrate… we can create sustainable lifestyle change that delivers a far more powerful ROI to the company,” said Dan Burns, CEO of Athletes’ Performance.

Harvest Power Raises Additional $15 Million
Harvest Power (Waltham, Mass.) has announced a $15-million extension to its Series C financing round, led by Piper Jaffray with Tur Partners and Industry Ventures participating. This brings Harvest’s Series C capital¬raise to $125 million in total. Harvest will use the investment to expand its business of producing renewable energy and compost based fertilizers from organic materials. True North Venture Partners led the initial $110 million financing alongside existing investors including Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, DAG Ventures, and Generation Investment Management. Founded in 2008, Harvest produces energy and nutrient rich soils from organic materials like food scraps and yard trimmings. The company expects to complete construction this year of two large anaerobic digestion facilities. According to the company, which owns and operates a network of facilities in the United States and Canada, 500 million tons of organic materials are produced in North America each year.

EcoScraps Raises $1.5 Million in Series A Funding
EcoScraps (Salt Lake City, Utah), a provider of organic, chemical- and manure-free lawn and garden products, has received $1.5 million in series A venture financing. The round was led by KickStart; other investors included DBL Investors and Peterson Ventures. Funding will be used to expand into new markets, develop products, and attract talent. EcoScraps diverts produce waste from local grocery stores and restaurants and turns it into compost and other lawn and garden products. The products contain twice the amount of essential soil nutrients compared to typical manure- and chemical-based soil products on the market, the company said. Founded two years ago, EcoScraps currently sells its organic compost in Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. Americans generate more than 30 million tons of food waste each year, the company noted.

5-Hour Energy Sells $450 Million in Private Placement
Innovation Ventures LLC, the holding company of Living Essentials LLC (Farmington Hills, Mich.), which makes 5-Hour Energy, has sold $450 million of senior secured notes in a private placement, more than the originally planned $400 million. Founded by Manoj Bhargava in 2000, net sales of the 5-Hour Energy shot were $595.8 million last year, according to offering documents cited by contributor Dale Buss at Forbes.com. While the company saw sales flatten for the second quarter primarily due to a decrease in sales to mass merchandisers, the Forbes article also indicated that the company believes growth potential remains, with new products, expanded distribution, and additional manufacturing capacity under consideration.

Aseptic Solutions Fits Glanbia’s Integration Plans
Glanbia plc, the international nutritional ingredients and cheese group, has acquired Aseptic Solutions USA (Corona, Calif.), a manufacturer of premium shelf stable high acid beverages made with aseptic technology, for $60 million. Aseptic Solutions was founded in 2004 and is a manufacturer and co-packer of nutritional and dietary beverages including vitamin shots, protein shakes, and natural fruit juices.  It employs 175 people. The business will be part of Glanbia Nutritional Ingredient Technologies (Fitchburg, Wis.). The acquisition is in line with Glanbia’s goal of providing “end-to-end solutions capability as an ingredients supplier, formulator and end product manufacturer.”

NatureShare Raises $1.5 Million for Apps
Green Mountain Digital has completed a $1.5 million convertible note fundraising round and been renamed NatureShare (Woodstock, Vt.). Funds were raised from new and previous angel investors, including follow-on investment from the Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies’ seed capital fund. Founded in 2009, NatureShare is a social platform and publisher of mobile applications for nature and outdoor lifestyles. Its published mobile apps include Audubon Birds of North America, Orvis Fly Fishing, GardenMinder, and Sailing World.

Natural Grocers IPO Raises $107 Million
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, the natural and organic groceries and dietary supplements retailer, raised $107 million from its IPO in July. The stock was priced at $15 but immediately rose to $17-18. Founded in 1955 by Margaret and Philip Isely, Natural Grocers has expanded from 27 stores in three states in 2008 to 55 stores in 11 states. As of June 30, 2012, the company reported more than 40 consecutive quarters of positive comparable store sales growth. Net sales in FY 2011 ended September 30 were $264.5 million. Competing with Whole Foods and Sprouts, among other retailers, the company said its “commitment to carrying only carefully vetted, affordably priced and high-quality natural and organic products and dietary supplements differentiates us in the industry.”

Big Tree Farms Raises $1 Million for Superfoods Business
Big Tree Farms Inc. (Ashland, Ore.), a supplier of raw and superfood products, has closed on $1.9 million of a $2.1 million Series B investment, according to an amended SEC filing in July. Big Tree Farms sells four main products sourced from Indonesian farmers and processed at facilities in Bali: coconut water drink mix, coconut palm sugar, raw cacao products, and raw cashews. The company sells online, via affiliates, and through a handful of natural retail stores. Big Tree Farms is run by co-CEOs and owners Frederick Schilling and Ben Ripple. Schilling founded the organic chocolate company Dagoba, which was acquired by Hershey's in 2006. He expects Big Tree Farms’ 2012 sales to double this year from $2.5 million in 2011, according to an article in Sustainable Business Oregon. The company recently constructed a production facility in Bali made entirely from bamboo.

Alberta Enterprise Invests in Avrio Ventures II
FMC Corp. (Philadelphia, Pa.) has acquired Phytone Ltd. (Staffordshire, U.K.), a producer of natural colors used in the food, beverage, personal care, and nutrition sectors. "We expect the high growth natural colors market to reach well over $1 billion by 2015,” said Pierre Brondeau, president, CEO and chairman of FMC.  “The addition of Phytone's unique color technology, coupled with our acquisition last year of Chilean-based South Pole Biogroup, greatly strengthens our position in this exciting market." FMC is a diversified chemical company reporting annual sales of $3.4 billion in 2011.

Global Obesity Shapes Investment “Megatrend”
Efforts to tackle obesity will form an important investment theme for fund managers in coming decades, according to a BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research report. Globesity: The Global Fight Against Obesity identifies an investment “megatrend” with a shelf life of 25 to 50 years. BofA Merrill Lynch has created a related stock list centering on four areas: Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare; Food; Commercial Weight Loss, Diet Management and Nutrition; and Sports Apparel and Equipment. According to the report, the costs of managing obesity are much greater than previously believed. In May 2012, the U.S. Institute of Medicine estimated the annual cost of obesity-related illness in the United States at more than $190 billion, equal to 21% of annual medical spending. Previous studies estimated 10%. Treating obese patients comes at a higher premium than treating smokers: Obesity adds 50% to annual medical costs, while smoking adds 20%.

Jack & Jake's Attracts Socially Conscious Investor
Jack & Jake's, a sustainable food distributor based in Louisiana, has received a $225,000 investment round led by Keller Enterprises and joined by the Social Venture Fund of The Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Michigan. Angel investors and Amcref Community Capital also participated. Jack & Jake's is building a local food system in southeast Louisiana that includes a network of over 200 local farms and fishers, a central fresh food warehouse, and refrigerated transportation. “We are strengthening the local food supply and reducing the price of healthy fresh foods by developing and implementing the infrastructure necessary to connect farmers and fishers with those who need access to healthy foods at an affordable price,” the company states. Students in the Social Venture Fund have created metrics against which to measure the impact of the investment in financial, community, and environmental terms.

Nestlé Invests in Medical Food for Alzheimer’s
Accera Inc. (Broomfield, Colo.), a healthcare company focused on acute and chronic neurodegenerative diseases, will receive investment from Nestlé Health Science SA (Vevey, Switzerland) to develop and commercialize Axona, a prescription medical food for mild to moderate Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Luis Cantarell, president and CEO of Nestlé Health Science, will join Accera’s board of directors. According to the Axona website, AD patients suffer a dramatic drop in the brain’s ability to metabolize glucose; Axona addresses energy deficiencies in the brain by providing an alternative source of energy. In clinical trials, patients on Axona experienced cognitive improvement in 45 days. Nestlé Health Science is focused on developing science-based personalized nutritional solutions for chronic medical conditions.

LycoRed Acquires Beta Carotene Business
LycoRed (Beer-Sheva, Israel), a global provider of lycopene, has acquired Vitan Ltd. of the Ukraine. Founded in 2002, Vitan’s expertise is in fermentation of the blakeslea trispora fungus to produce beta-carotene biomass, a raw material for production of beta-carotene based products for applications in food, food fortification, and dietary supplements. "Vitan will add value to LycoRed, providing us unique access to sourcing and improving our ability to compete in the natural carotenoids global marketplace," said CEO Morris Zelkha.

Smoothie Franchise Sold, Receives Investment
SK USA Inc. (New Orleans, La.) has agreed to purchase Smoothie King Franchises Inc. (Covington, La.). Co-founders Steve and Cindy Kuhnau, who have run Smoothie King for nearly 40 years, will sell a controlling interest to SK USA, headed by CEO Wan Kim, who opened the franchise’s first international location in Korea in 2003. "Smoothie King maintains potential for tremendous growth both here in the U.S. as well as in international markets,” said Wan. “We plan to open more than 1,000 new locations both in the United States and internationally by the end of 2017." As part of the purchase, Standard Charter Private Equity and National Pension Fund are making a “significant financial investment” in the brand. Smoothie King has more than 600 units operating in 32 States, the Caymans, and the Republic of Korea. It offers fresh blended smoothies, in addition to sports nutrition products, energy bars, healthy snacks, and supplements.

Humana and KaBOOM! Build Playgrounds for Health
Humana Inc. (Louisville, Ky.) and its Foundation have announced a three-year partnership with the national nonprofit KaBOOM! (Washington, D.C.) to build 39 playgrounds in communities across the country. The partnership represents a $6 million investment by the publicly traded health care company to promote well being for people of all ages. Playgrounds will include senior-focused and multi-generational elements, such as fitness stations, walking paths, and community gardens. Humana and KaBOOM! partnered in 2011 to build playgrounds in nine communities.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

NCN News for July 13, 2012

Transactions
Campbell to Acquire Bolthouse Farms
North Castle Sells Cascade Helmets
Monster Replaces Sara Lee on S&P 500
Sequential Brands Enters Sports Footwear Category
Another $3 Million for MapMyFITNESS
Another Petfood Investment for Swander Pace
Natural Grocers Files for IPO
G-Form Gets Investment for Protective Sports Equipment
FMC Acquires Phytone in the U.K.
Fresh Fruit Franchise Receives Investment
Global Ingredients Company Acquires Pacific Pure Aid
Unreal Brands Gets Investment for “Unjunked” Chocs
Skinny Nutritional Issues Shares
Danone Becomes Majority Shareholder in Centrale Laitière
Local Meats Business Model Attracts Seed Funding
Growth Investment for Dr. Fresh
High Ridge Brands to Acquire White Rain Personal Care

Campbell to Acquire Bolthouse Farms
Campbell Soup Company (Camden, N.J.) has agreed to acquire Bolthouse Farms (Bakersfield, Calif.) from a fund managed by Madison Dearborn Partners LLC for $1.55 billion in cash. Founded in 1915, Bolthouse is a vertically integrated food and beverage company focused on packaged fresh foods (notably baby carrots), refrigerated salad dressings, and super-premium juices, including acai juice. Bolthouse had $689 million in sales last year. Campbell’s canned products are mostly found in supermarket center aisles, and the acquisition is expected to provide a larger presence in the $12-billion market for packaged fresh foods. Bolthouse’s refrigerated beverages together with Campbell’s V8 business will create a healthy beverage platform with annual sales of approximately $1.2 billion, according to Campbell. Bolthouse Farms will be operated as a separate business unit.

North Castle Sells Cascade Helmets
North Castle Partners has completed the sale of Cascade Helmets Holdings Inc. (Liverpool, N.Y.), a manufacturer of lacrosse equipment, to Bauer Performance Sports Ltd. (Exeter, N.H.) for $64 million. North Castle noted that, in partnership with Cascade's leadership team, during its tenure it accelerated product innovation, doubled sales, and built a new line of helmets with hockey star Mark Messier. "We continue to look for opportunities across the Health, Wellness and Active Living markets to leverage our knowledge, network, and experience in building market leaders like Cascade," said North Castle's Managing Partner Chip Baird. North Castle's current portfolio includes Mineral Fusion, Red Door Spas, Performance Bicycles, Palladio Beauty Group, and World Health Clubs. Ranking among its prior portfolio holdings are Atkins Nutritionals, Bora-Bora Organic Foods, EAS, Enzymatic Therapy, Naked Juice Company, and Avalon Organics.

Monster Replaces Sara Lee on S&P 500
Monster Beverage Corporation (Corona, Calif.), formerly known as Hansen Natural Corporation, a marketer of energy drinks, functional beverages, juices and natural sodas, has been added to the S&P 500 index. It has replaced Sara Lee, which has split its North American and international beverage businesses into two publicly traded companies: The Hillshire Brands Co., which will replace Monster on the S&P MidCap 400, and D.E Master Blenders 1753, a pure-play tea and coffee business. Monster, which has been publicly traded since 1995, will join Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Dr Pepper Snapple on the S&P 500. Monster Beverage reported that net sales rose 30.6% to $1.7 billion for the year ended December 31, 2011.

Sequential Brands Enters Sports Footwear Category
Sequential Brands Group Inc. (Los Angeles, Calif.), owner of the William Rast and People’s Liberation fashion brands, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the DVS brand from DVS Shoe Company Inc. for approximately $8.55 million in cash. Sequential Brands reportedly made the highest offer at a bankruptcy court auction for DVS. The acquisition will extend Sequential Brands' licensing platform into the footwear category. DVS-branded products are sold worldwide at specialty action sports retailers. "This is the first of many acquisitions for Sequential," said William Sweedler, co-founder of Tengram Capital Partners and chairman of Sequential Brands. The company’s business model is focused on licensing its consumer brands to top retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers worldwide.

Another $3 Million for MapMyFITNESS
MapMyFITNESS (Austin, Texas) has announced $3 million in financing from Square 1 Bank. The investment follows a $9 million Series B round led by Austin Venture Partners and Milestone Venture Partners. MapMyFITNESS is a health and fitness technology company that runs a social network for fitness enthusiasts. Its network of websites and mobile applications includes MapMyRUN, MapMyRIDE, MapMyWALK, MapMyMOUNTAIN, and MapMyDOGWALK. Users get access to a searchable database of more than 45 million global routes, online training tools, fitness calculators, nutrition tracking and event listings. “After surpassing the 10 million registered users mark – including 4 million in only the past six months – our goal is to keep innovating ways for our members to keep improving their fitness, nutrition, and overall health,” said Richard Jalichandra, CEO of MapMyFITNESS.

Another Petfood Investment for Swander Pace
Swander Pace Capital has made another investment in the British pet food market, announcing in May the acquisition of pet treat manufacturer Pointer Pet Products Ltd. (Rotherham, Yorkshire), a manufacturer of branded and private-label baked dog treats. The announcement came shortly after Swander Pace’s investment in Cambrian Pet Foods, a British maker of wet and dry pet foods. “The investment by Swander Pace Capital will enable us to work together with Cambrian to achieve purchasing and supply chain synergies and leverage the expertise of both companies while ensuring real focus on service, quality, and innovation to achieve market growth," said Pointer Pet Products Managing Director Nick Whitley. Cambrian and Pointer are listed as subsidiaries of Wholesome Pet Care Ltd. on the investor’s website. Other Swander Pace investments in pet food have included the natural and premium pet food companies Merrick Pet Care and Eagle Pack Pet Foods.

Natural Grocers Files for IPO
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage Inc. (Lakewood, Colo.) has filed with the SEC for a proposed initial public offering of common stock on the New York Stock Exchange with an offer amount of $115 million. The number of shares to be sold and the price range for the offering have not yet been determined. Some shares will be issued and sold by Natural Grocers and some sold by stockholders. Natural Grocers is a specialty retailer of natural and organic groceries and dietary supplements. At the end of June 2012, the company numbered 55 stores in 11 states: Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and Wyoming. Natural Grocers grew net sales to $264.5 million in fiscal year 2011, up from $206.1 million in 2009.

G-Form Gets Investment for Protective Sports Equipment
VO2 Partners has closed an investment in G-Form (Providence, R.I.), a manufacturer of branded impact protection equipment for action sports and consumer electronics. G-Form uses a patent-protected Reactive Protection Technology to create lightweight, flexible materials that stiffen upon impact and absorb over 90% of impact energy. G-Form’s products include elbow pads, kneepads, and protective apparel for mountain biking, skateboarding, and other sports. G-Form has used viral marketing campaigns to generate consumer interest. VO2 Partners Advisory Board member Matthew Chamlin, former president of Izod-Lacoste, will work with G-Form management to guide brand and marketing strategy.

FMC Acquires Phytone in the U.K.
FMC Corp. (Philadelphia, Pa.) has acquired Phytone Ltd. (Staffordshire, U.K.), a producer of natural colors used in the food, beverage, personal care, and nutrition sectors. "We expect the high growth natural colors market to reach well over $1 billion by 2015,” said Pierre Brondeau, president, CEO and chairman of FMC.  “The addition of Phytone's unique color technology, coupled with our acquisition last year of Chilean-based South Pole Biogroup, greatly strengthens our position in this exciting market." FMC is a diversified chemical company reporting annual sales of $3.4 billion in 2011.

Fresh Fruit Franchise Receives Investment
Edible Arrangements, a maker of hand-sculpted, fresh-fruit arrangements, has announced a strategic partnership with Catterton Partners that includes a capital investment to support global expansion. Terms were not disclosed. Founded in 1999 by brothers Tariq and Kamran Farid, Edible Arrangements has more than 1,100 franchise locations open or under development worldwide.  In 2011 the company opened 86 new stores, including 10 international locations, and expects to open more than 100 new domestic and international units in 2012. "Edible Arrangements is one of the fastest-growing franchise operations in the U.S., capitalizing not only on the growth of special-occasion gifts but also on the healthy food trend," said Scott Dahnke, managing partner of Catterton Partners. Catterton is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Global Ingredients Company Acquires Pacific Pure Aid
DIANA (Vannes, France), a developer of natural and functional food ingredients, has announced the purchase of Pacific Pure Aid (Silverton, Ore.). Founded in 1909, Pacific Pure Aid had been held as a 50-50 joint venture by the international flavors and fragrances company Givaudan and Myron Root & Company Inc. Using natural vegetable raw materials, Pacific Pure Aid makes and sells vegetable extracts and concentrates for the agri-food industry, generating revenues of more than $10 million in 2011, up 14% for the year. “The entry of Pacific Pure Aid into the group allows DIANA to accelerate its development in North America with an industrial presence and a sourcing in high quality local raw materials, complementing its range of natural culinary solutions,” the company stated. DIANA reported revenues of  €392 million in 2011.

Unreal Brands Gets Investment for “Unjunked” Chocs
Raptor Consumer Partners (RCP) has partnered with Unreal Brands Inc. (Boston, Mass.) to help launch a line of “unjunked” chocolate candies in over 30,000 stores nationwide this summer. RCP is Unreal’s lead investor, along with co-founder Michael Bronner. Terms were not disclosed. “The combination of a large market that has lacked meaningful innovation, coupled with a massive movement towards health and wellness has created unprecedented opportunity for Unreal to offer alternatives to existing food products we all know and love,” said John Burns, RCP’s managing director who has joined Unreal’s board of directors. Unreal candy contains no corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, artificial colors or flavors, and averages 40% less sugar than conventional candy. Founded two years ago by Bronner and his 13-year-old son after an argument over Halloween candy, Unreal has assembled a team that includes former executives from Kellogg’s, P&G, Google, and Godiva. CVS was the first major retailer to sign on.

Skinny Nutritional Issues Shares
Trim Capital LLC and Skinny Nutritional Corp. (Conshohocken, Pa.), the maker of zero-calorie Skinny Water, have agreed to a financing transaction involving the issuance of $9 million of preferred and common stock and a $6 million senior secured credit facility.  At the initial closing, Skinny Nutritional sold a $1 million senior secured bridge note. “Having access to this capital will allow us to accelerate our marketing and brand initiatives, add new product lines under the Skinny Nutritional Corp. umbrella of Skinny trademarks, and build inventory levels to satisfy the demand for our products,” said Michael Salaman, CEO of Skinny Nutritional.

Danone Becomes Majority Shareholder in Centrale Laitière
Danone is raising its interest in Centrale Laitière in Morocco to 67% by acquiring part of holding company SNI's shareholding for €550 million. Centrale Laitière, in which Danone has been a 29.2% shareholder since 2001, is a leading dairy product company with nearly 60% of the Moroccan market and annual sales of around €600 million. Centrale Laitière already markets the Danone brands Yawmy, Moufid, and Activia. The move confirms the strategic appeal of markets in North Africa for Danone. Danone is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Local Meats Business Model Attracts Seed Funding
AgLocal (Prairie Village, Kan.), a startup dedicated to making it easy and convenient for anyone to buy or sell locally raised meats, has raised the first $1 million of a potentially larger seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz and OpenAir Equity Partners, according to the Silicon Prairie News in June. Also participating in the seed round were angel investors from Kansas City and Silicon Valley. Co-founded by Jones and Jacob McDaniel, AgLocal connects independent farmers and producers to local businesses and consumers.

Growth Investment for Dr. Fresh
Moelis Capital Partners (MCP) has made a growth investment in conjunction with the recapitalization of Dr. Fresh (Buena Park, Calif.), a designer and marketer of toothbrushes, mouthwashes, toothpaste, and other personal care products. Dr. Fresh brands include Binaca, Dr. Fresh, Firefly, and Orazyme. The company has offices in the USA, UK, and China, and sells its products worldwide through the FDM channel and value retailers. Dr. Fresh has grown rapidly since being founded in 1998, according to MCP. Operating Partner Doug Corbett has joined Dr. Fresh as CEO. He was recently President of InBev USA and formerly worked for PepsiCo and Procter & Gamble Inc.  Dr. Fresh founder Dr. Nanda will focus on product innovation and sourcing and will serve as chairman of the board.

High Ridge Brands to Acquire White Rain Personal Care
Brynwood VI’s portfolio company, High Ridge Brands Co., has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the rights to the White Rain personal care brand from Sun Products (Stamford, Conn.). As part of the transaction, High Ridge Brands is acquiring the Adorn, The Dry Look, Mink, and Toni brands. Terms and conditions were not disclosed.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

NCN News for June 29, 2012

Smart Balance Strengthens Gluten-Free Holdings with Purchase of Udi’s Organic
Online Grocer Mile High Organics Closes Seed Round
Balance Water Closes Series A Financing
Crowd-Funding Works for Episencial
Bazi International Reaches Merger Agreement with GT Beverage
Snack Food Giant J&J Acquires Gourmet Pretzels
Pharmachem Buys Integrated Aloe Vera Supplier
Weld North Branches Out Into Health & Wellness
Glenbrook Completes Majority Investment in Boa Technology
Gourmet Sandwich Chain Investment
Sunopta Completes Divestiture
Beyond Meat Attracts Obvious Investment
Starbucks Acquires Bakery Bay Bread

Smart Balance Strengthens Gluten-Free Holdings
Smart Balance Inc. (Paramus, N.J.) has agreed to acquire Udi's Healthy Foods LLC (Denver, Colo.) for $125 million in cash from majority shareholder Hubson Acquisition LLC, an affiliate of E&A Industries; the family of founder Udi Bar-on; and other minority holders. The effective asset purchase price is expected to be around $103 million after cash tax benefits realized by Smart Balance. Udi's markets gluten-free baked goods and granola through retail and food service channels. The company grew from $4.3 million in net sales in 2009 to an annualized run-rate of $72.4 million in net sales based on first quarter 2012 results. Smart Balance already owned Glutino's, a brand of shelf stable and frozen gluten-free foods, which it purchased in 2011 for $66.3 million. The Udi’s acquisition "will be transformational to our company, as it will position Smart Balance as a leader in gluten-free, accelerate our growth rate, and further diversify our mix toward high-growth natural brands,” said Smart Balance Chairman and CEO Stephen Hughes. E&A Industries is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Organic Online Grocer Closes Seed Round
Mile High Organics (Boulder, Colo.), an organic online grocer, has closed a seven-figure seed round which includes investments by 500 Startups and TA Venture. The company, which was launched in 2010, will use the funds to expand its grocery delivery service. Mile High Organics offers more than 600 grocery products, with an emphasis on providing as much local, seasonal organic produce and groceries as possible. Online grocery shopping is experiencing a resurgence, according to Mile High, which cited Nielsen data showing U.S. consumers spent about $12 billion on online grocery services in 2010, a figure forecast to reach $25 billion by 2014. The U.S. organic industry grew by 9.5 percent in 2011 to $31.5 billion in sales, according to the Organic Trade Association. Mile High was a presenting company at NCN IX in Los Angeles in Fall 2011.

Balance Water Closes Series A Financing
Balance Water Inc. (West Orange, N.J.) has closed a Series A financing round from Emil Capital Partners, the financier Thomas H. Lee, and Australian actor Hugh Jackman. Balance is an unflavored functional beverage infused with wild harvested Australian flower essences for focus, relaxation, digestion and other physical and emotional benefits. The company is aiming to expand beyond natural product channels into mainstream retail. “Balance is a unique, scalable beverage that we believe has the potential to be a world-class brand,” said Andreas Guldin, chief executive at Emil Capital. In 1992, Thomas H. Lee Partners bought Snapple for $135 million and two years later sold it to Quaker Oats for $1.7 billion. Balance Water was a presenting company at NCN VIII in New York in Spring 2011.

Crowd-Funding Works for Episencial
Episencial (Los Angeles, Calif.), a company that makes natural skincare products for babies, has raised $200,000 through the crowd-funding website CircleUp. According to a Women’s Wear Daily (WWD) article linked on CircleUp’s website, Episencial took 14 days to raise the capital from 18 accredited investors. Episencial has also raised $300,000 via more traditional routes, from Jeffrey Hollender, Seventh Generation Inc. co-founder, and Philip Schlein, former CEO and president of Macy’s California. Episencial has roughly $1 million in annual revenues, WWD reported. CircleUp is an online social marketplace that supports direct equity investments from individual investors in privately held consumer and retail companies. A recently released report by Massolution concluded that crowdfunding platforms raised almost $1.5 billion and funded more than one million campaigns in 2011 (including non-profits and causes); North America was the largest market for fundraising at $837 million. CircleUp founder Ryan Caldbeck was a presenter at NCN’s Health & Wellness Investor Forum II in Washington DC in Spring 2012.

Bazi International Reaches Merger Agreement with GT Beverage
Bazi International Inc. (Irvine, Calif.), a publicly traded provider of energy shots with superfruits and added nutrients, has entered into a merger agreement with GT Beverage Company Inc. (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.). GT Beverage shareholders will retain approximately 95.5% of Bazi's total common shares outstanding.  In connection with the merger agreement, GT Beverage has issued a line of credit to Bazi for up to $600,000. GT Beverage makes vitamin-enhanced water drinks that were created as low-calorie, low-sugar alternatives to juice and soda for children.

Snack Food Giant Acquires Gourmet Pretzels
J&J Snack Foods Corp. (Pennsauken, N.J.) has acquired the assets of Kim & Scott's Gourmet Pretzels (Chicago, Ill.), which makes hand-made pretzels using natural, premium, and gluten-free ingredients. Co-founder Scott Holstein will continue to work for the company. The gourmet pretzels are carried in club stores, mainstream supermarkets and the natural retail channel, including Sprouts and Whole Foods. Kim & Scott's had revenues of $9.7 million in 2010, according to the 2011 Inc. 500 ranking.  J&J Snack Foods, a publicly traded company serving both retail and food service channels, reported sales for fiscal year ended September 24, 2011 of $744.1 million, up 7%.

Pharmachem Buys Integrated Aloe Vera Supplier
Pharmachem Laboratories Inc. (Kearny, N.J.), a supplier of branded and specialty nutritional ingredients, has acquired Improve USA (DeSoto, Texas), an integrated aloe vera manufacturer with three facilities in Mexico. Improve USA controls its production from farming through to conversion of aloe vera leaves into powder or liquid ingredients. “Having three separate facilities and multiple farming operations under our control ensures a secure supply of aloe vera for our customers,” said Peter Hafermann, newly appointed president of Improve USA. “In addition, it gives us the flexibility of bottling in Mexico or at our Alix Technologies facility in Utah.” Improve USA will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary and retain its current management and employees.

Weld North Branches Out Into Health & Wellness
Weld North LLC, an investment company founded by former Kaplan Inc. CEO Jonathan Grayer in partnership with Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR), has acquired a significant minority stake in Organic Avenue (New York), a small specialty chain offering organic juices and raw food. The investment marks Weld’s entry into the nutrition and health & wellness space. Organic Avenue launched its LOVE* (Live. Organic. Vegan. Experience) cleanse organic juicing and raw food plans in 2005 and created 50 product categories including organic, cold-pressed juices, soups, smoothies, salads, booster shots, gourmet entrees and desserts. The company also offers classes in food prep, community gatherings and retreats. Organic Avenue has eight locations and an e-commerce website. Grayer will become chairman.

Glenbrook Completes Majority Investment in Boa Technology
Boa Technology Inc. (Denver, Colo.), the creator of the proprietary Boa Closure System used in performance footwear, sports, outdoor, and medical products, has received funding from Glenbrook Consumer Partners. The agreement includes a strategic majority investment to accelerate Boa Technology’s brand growth. Entrepreneur Gary Hammerslag founded Boa in 1998. Recognizing the limitations of traditional shoelaces and other closure systems, he crafted a dial-based prototype using steel lace, nylon guides and mechanical reel that became the Boa Closure System. Boa partners with more than 100 brands.

Gourmet Sandwich Chain Raises Investment
Mendocino Farms (Los Angeles), a fast-casual restaurant specializing in gourmet sandwiches, in conjunction with its investment partner GrowthPoint Partners, has announced a capital investment by Catterton Partners. The investment will be used to expand the Mendocino Farms concept throughout Southern California and beyond.  Terms were not disclosed. Founded by Mario Del Pero and his wife and business partner Ellen Chen in 2005, Mendocino Farms has established five restaurants in Los Angeles. Del Pero will continue as CEO. “Catterton is the right partner to help us take our unique restaurant concept to the next level,” said Del Pero. “Not only does Catterton have a track record of success with restaurants, but they also have expertise helping to grow brands that promote all-natural ingredients such as Plum Organics, O.N.E. coconut water, Van's Natural Foods, and Sweet Leaf Tea, which we believe will be invaluable as our brand matures." Catterton Partners is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Sunopta Completes Divestiture
SunOpta Inc. (Toronto, Canada) has completed the divestiture of its Canadian natural health products distribution business, Purity Life Natural Health Products, to an affiliate of Banyan Capital Partners for $14.7 million. Purity Life has annual revenues of approximately $60 million. “This transaction further simplifies and focuses SunOpta on our core integrated natural and organic foods sourcing and processing model,” said Steve Bromley, SunOpta’s president and CEO. For the year ended December 31, 2011 SunOpta reported revenues of $1.08 billion, up 20.5% for the year; revenues increased 11.6% excluding acquisitions. The results reflected “continued growth in the core natural and organic foods categories within which we operate,” Bromley said. The publicly traded company also divested frozen fruit assets last year but acquired Lorton’s Fresh Squeezed Juices with revenues of approximately $10 million.

Beyond Meat Attracts Obvious Investment
The Obvious Corporation (San Francisco, Calif.), the re-launched company that incubated Twitter before it was spun out, has invested in Beyond Meat (formerly Savage River Inc., Cumberland, Md.), a developer of plant-based meat substitutes. Professors from the University of Missouri created the technology to produce more convincing meat alternatives, subsequently licensed to the founder of Beyond Meat, Ethan Brown. The company’s first product was Veggie Chicken Strips, which contain no saturated or transfats, cholesterol, gluten, antibiotics or GMOs. Announcing the investment, Biz Stone, co–founder and chief creative officer of The Obvious Corporation, wrote: “Aside from the fact that the products are healthy, sustainable, kind, and delicious, we are involved because with one company we have an impact on climate change, resource scarcity, human health, animal welfare, and more.” Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers is also an investor.

Starbucks Acquires Bakery Bay Bread
Starbucks Coffee has agreed to acquire Bay Bread LLC  (San Francisco, Calif.) and its La Boulange bakery brand for $100 million in cash from management and Next World Group. It will also hire the French baker and founder Pascal Rigo. La Boulange is known for its French pastries and breads made from scratch. “This is an investment in our core business. After more than 40 years, we will be able to say that we are bakers too,” said Howard Schultz, Starbucks chairman, president and CEO. Rigo opened the first La Boulange store in San Francisco in 1999, living with his family above the original café on Pine Street. Today La Boulange has 19 retail locations in the Bay Area. In 2011 Starbucks acquired the juice company Evolution Fresh for $30 million.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified. 

• NCN News for June 1, 2012

Transactions
NCN Presenter NuMe Health Closes Series A Financing
Alcresta Secures $10 Million Investment
VitaminSpice Acquires Eat Right Assets
LaFourchette Attracts €8 million for Restaurant Booking Platform
ConAgra Buys Kangaroo Pita Chip Business
Ocean Nutrition Sells to DSM $540 Million
BASF Acquires Omega 3 Technology Firm Equateq
Stauber Buys Pharmline
Swander Pace Makes Third Pet Food Investment in Cambrian
AAK Buys Oasis Foods of New Jersey

NuMe Closes Series A Financing
NuMe Health LLC (New Orleans, La.), a biotechnology company developing evidence-based cobiotic products that modify bacteria in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, has closed a $1.5 million Series A financing. The round was led by existing investor BVM Capital with participation of company insiders and several new private investors. NuMe is also initiating a clinical trial of its lead cobiotic product, NM504, designed to support healthy blood glucose levels and metabolic fitness in people with prediabetes. Funds will be used to develop the initial format for the company’s first consumer product, complete the pilot clinical trial, and prepare for a direct-to-consumer launch. NuMe's initial products are derived from bioactive plant ingredients that promote the growth of specific bacteria with the potential to positively affect metabolic conditions. NuMe was a presenting company at the NCN Fall 2011 Investor Meeting in Los Angeles.

Alcresta Secures $10 Million Investment
Alcresta (Newton, Mass.), a developer of enzyme-based nutritional products for infants, adults and patients battling acute or chronic conditions, has raised a $10 million Series A venture capital financing. Led by Bessemer Venture Partners, Frazier Healthcare and Third Rock Ventures, the Alcresta investment follows the recent launch and $15 million Series A financing of Allena Pharmaceuticals by the same investors. The two wholly independent companies will maintain separate product pipelines while sharing resources and leveraging the operational experience and non-systemic protein delivery expertise of the combined management team, a press release stated. Proceeds from the Alcresta financing will support discovery and development of enzyme-based nutritional products and medical devices.

Functional Food Company Acquires Calorie-Burning Recipes
VitaminSpice Inc. (Wayne, Pa.) has acquired the assets of Eat Right International Inc., including natural, gourmet spice recipes designed to burn calories. The weight loss seasonings are based on Professor Jeya Henry's research on spice-enhanced foods and metabolism at Oxford Brooks University. VitaminSpice sells vitamin-, mineral- and antioxidant-infused spices and food products made using a proprietary micro-encapsulation process. The Eat Right seasonings and technology will be incorporated in VitaminSpice’s own line of spices, in addition to condiments like ketchup, mustard, relish, salsa, and salad dressings. VitaminSpice was founded in 2008.

LaFourchette Attracts €8 million for Restaurant Booking Platform
LaFourchette (Paris, France), a mobile and online booking platform and management software provider for restaurants in Europe, has secured  €8 million from Serena Capital and Partech International. The two venture capital firms join Otium Capital, the company's initial investor. LaFourchette will use the funds to strengthen its position in France, Spain and Switzerland, scale the business in new countries, and improve its sideline of products. In 2011 LaFourchette generated over €100 million in revenues for its partner restaurants and plans to reach €500 million within the next three years, according to Jean-Marc Patouillaud, a managing partner at Partech. The company has about 11,000 partner restaurants.

ConAgra Buys Kangaroo Pita Chip Business
ConAgra Foods Inc. (Omaha, Neb.) has acquired the pita chip business of Kangaroo Brands (Milwaukee, Wis.) in line with its strategy of growing its private label foods business. Kangaroo Brands is a leader in private label pita chips, generating approximately $20 million in annual revenue. The acquisition includes a manufacturing facility and approximately 50 employees who    joined ConAgra Foods. Kangaroo Brands will still own and market its pita bread and frozen sandwiches.

Ocean Nutrition Sells to DSM $540 Million
Royal DSM (Heerlan, Netherlands) has agreed to acquire fish oil company Ocean Nutrition Canada (Halifax, NS) from Clearwater Fine Foods and funds managed by Richardson Capital for C$540 million. Ocean Nutrition supplies omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) to the dietary supplement and food and beverage markets. Founded in 1997, it has approximately 415 employees and anticipated net sales for 2012 of C$190 million with an EBITDA of C$55-60 million. The company has averaged 20% annual growth for the past five years. The acquisition is described as complementary to DSM’s acquisition of Martek, a manufacturer of algae-based  DHA and ARA for $1.1 billion in February 2011. “Given the very different value proposition and pricing of fish oil derived PUFAs (naturally occurring mixtures of DHA and EPA) compared to microbial derived PUFAs (DHA and ARA), these products do not compete,” the company stated. Other recent DSM purchases in the nutrition arena include a $37 million deal with Verenium Corp. in March 2012 for the company’s oilseed processing business, exclusive license to certain enzymes, and access to new gene libraries. In 2010-2011 DSM acquired two carotenoid companies using fermentation technologies: Microbia Inc. in the United States and Vitadene in Spain. DSM expects its nutrition and food business to achieve annual sales of about €4 billion in 2013, Reuters reported. DSM is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

BASF Acquires Omega 3 Technology Firm Equateq
BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany) has acquired Equateq Ltd., a manufacturer of concentrated omega-3 fatty acids using proprietary chromatographic separation methods. Equateq, which has a production site located on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland with 47 employees, will be integrated into the Pharma Ingredients & Services unit, which is part of BASF’s Nutrition & Health division. Financial details were not disclosed. “Equateq’s technologies will enable us to customize fatty acid concentrates with variable ratios of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) at concentration levels of up to 99 percent purity. This is unique in the market,” said Martin Widmann, senior vice president of  BASF’s Pharma Ingredients & Services. BASF is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Stauber Buys Pharmline
Stauber Performance Ingredients (Fullerton, Calif.), a nutritional ingredient company founded in 1969, has acquired Pharmline Inc. (Florida, N.Y.) in a transaction that will broaden its product lines and geographic footprint. Founded in 1986, Pharmline manufactures nutritional ingredients with specialized processing capabilities such as mixing, drying, granulation, and micronization.  It also sells and distributes botanicals, fish oil, minerals, vitamins, and amino acids, in addition to operating an in-house lab and R&D facilities. Stauber, which  became a portfolio company of ICV Partners in 2011, distributes minerals, herbs, vitamins, amino acids and fruit and vegetable extracts to the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and health food industries. “This acquisition represents the next step in building a market leading company with a national presence,” said Ira Moreland, managing director of ICV.

Swander Pace Makes Third Pet Food Investment in Cambrian
Swander Pace Capital has invested an undisclosed amount in Cambrian Pet Foods (Llangadog, Wales), which generated more than £16 million in revenues last year, according to Wales Online. Family-run Cambrian is the only independent company in the mainland U.K. able to produce both wet and dry pet food. The company produces holistic, dietetic and convalescent pet foods, selling both private label products and its own Gelert brand. Swander Pace has invested in two other pet food companies: Eagle Pack Pet Foods and current portfolio company Merrick Pet Care Inc., which owns the Merrick, Castor & Pollux, Organix, Natural Ultramix, Whole Earth Farms and Good Buddy brands.

AAK Buys Oasis Foods of New Jersey
AarhusKarlshamn (AAK, Karlshamn, Sweden), a global producer of value-added specialty vegetable oils and fats, has acquired Oasis Foods Company (Hillside, N.J.). Founded in 1975, Oasis employs approximately 160 people and had revenues of approximately SEK 925 million in 2011. The company provides edible oils, margarine, spreads, shortenings, vinegars, mayonnaise and sauces to the food service industry. The acquisition is part of the AAK Acceleration plan: “Oasis is a very well-run and successful company in the Food Service industry, and it represents an excellent platform for our North American ambitions,” said Arne Frank, President and CEO of AAK Group.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for April 20, 2012

Transactions
Nestlé Buys Pfizer’s Infant Nutrition Business
Verlinvest Buys TSG’s Stake in Popchips
DuPont Acquires 100% of soy maker Solae
E-Commerce Kids Site Raises $5.1 Million
Just-Eat Raises $48 Million
Startup Concept Start Garden To Invest in Two Firms a Week
Prolog Ventures Leads Zeel Funding Round
Merrick Pet Care Acquires Castor & Pollux
L’Oreal Buys Cadum Soap Company
UNFI Joins Investment Partnership

Nestlé Buys Pfizer’s Infant Nutrition Business
Pfizer (New York) has agreed to sell its nutrition business to Nestlé for $11.85 billion cash. A global pediatric nutrition company with infant and toddler brands, Pfizer Nutrition had 2011 revenues of approximately $2.1 billion, up 15%. Pfizer Nutrition does not include supplement (Centrum) and OTC (Advil) lines that Pfizer includes in its Consumer Health  business unit. The acquisition price was 20 times Pfizer Nutrition’s estimated EBITDA this year, according to the Economist. Pfizer Nutrition is forecast to generate sales of $2.4 billion this year. A number of reports confirmed that Nestlé had vied with Danone to buy the company. According to Nestlé’s head of nutrition, Kurt Schmidt, the infant nutrition market is nearly $30 billion worldwide and growing 10% annually. Most of that growth is in emerging markets where Pfizer Nutrition has 85% of its sales. The combined Pfizer and Nestlé businesses could generate more than $7 billion in annual revenues. Nestlé bought U.S. baby food company Gerber in 2007 for $5.5 billion. Pfizer has stated its focus on its core pharmaceuticals business, putting its infant nutrition and animal health operations up for sale in July 2011. The sale is Pfizer’s largest since the $16.6-billion sale of consumer health brands including Sudafed cold medicine to Johnson & Johnson in 2006. In 2011, Pfizer sold off $750-million supplement and drug capsule-maker Capsugel to private equity firm Kohlberg, Kravis & Roberts for $2.4 billion. KKR had also bought Del Monte Foods for $5.3 billion and debt five months earlier. Nestlé is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Verlinvest Buys TSG’s Stake in Popchips
TSG Consumer Partners has sold its stake in Popchips (San Francisco) to Verlinvest of Belgium. Introduced in 2007, Popchips (popped rather than baked or fried) is one the fastest-growing snack brands, expected to record $100 million in sales this year, according to a San Francisco Chronicle article in March. TSG’s past portfolio companies have included Vitaminwater, Terra Chips, and Smart Balance. Verlinvest is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

DuPont Acquires 100% of Soy Maker Solae
DuPont (Wilmington, Del.) has acquired from Bunge full ownership of Solae LLC, a soy-based ingredients pioneer that makes soy proteins, isolates, lecithin, fibers, and concentrates. Solae (St. Louis, Mo.) was formed through a joint venture between DuPont and Bunge in 2003 of which DuPont previously owned 72% and Bunge 28%. DuPont contributed its Protein Technologies soy ingredients business to the joint venture. “DuPont is committed to nutrition and health. This investment in Solae, along with the acquisition of Danisco last year, has significantly added to our leadership position in food ingredients,” said DuPont Executive Vice President James C. Borel.  Many of the studies supporting the 1999 FDA soy-heart health claim used Solae soy protein. Solae’s petition for a soy protein cancer health claim was withdrawn in 2005.

E-Commerce Kids Site Raises $5.1 Million
Citrus Lane (Mountain View, Calif.), an e-commerce site that delivers a care package of childrens' products to its subscribers each month, has raised $5.1 million in Series A funding from GGV Capital and returning investor Greylock Partners. The company will use funds to continue to expand its business and add key hires. For $25 each month, Citrus Lane members receive a care package of four to five products based on their child's age. Products are selected from partner brands such as Green Toys, Weleda, Zoli, and Episencial and vetted by mothers. Companies are not allowed to pay for placement, Citrus Lane said. Citrus Lane raised a $1.5 million seed round of financing in March 2011 and shipped its first boxes in July 2011.

Just-Eat Raises $48 Million
Just-Eat (London), which claims to be the world’s largest takeaway ordering service, has closed a third financing round of $64 million from Vitruvian Partners and other investors, including Greylock Partners, Redpoint Ventures, and Index Ventures. This follows two prior financings totaling a reported £40 million. Funds will be used to accelerate Just-Eat’s international expansion. Just-Eat is currently represented in 10 countries and works with over 15,000 restaurants by centralizing takeout and delivery ordering on its website or applications. The company, founded in Denmark in 2000, has an annual run-rate approaching £60 million, according to the Financial Times in April. Also raising capital for acquisitions is German competitor Delivery Hero, which has raised €40 million.  

Start Garden To Invest in Two Firms a Week
Rick DeVos has opened a new venture capital fund called Start Garden (Grand Rapids, Mich.), which will invest $5,000 in two ideas each week and continue to invest incrementally as they gain momentum. The fund is backed by a $15 million commitment from members of the DeVos family of Amway fame. Amway is one of the largest global sellers of nutritional products. The Start Garden fund is designed to be a seed accelerator with the ultimate goal of making Michigan “an amazing place to have an idea and run with it.” One of the weekly investments will be chosen by Start Garden team members, and the public will have the opportunity to vote for the second investment on the Start Garden website.

Prolog Ventures Leads Zeel Funding Round
Zeel (New York, N.Y.), a free online service for booking appointments with pre-qualified health & wellness practitioners, has raised a new funding round led by Prolog Ventures. Ilya Nykin, co-founder and managing director of Prolog Ventures, will join Zeel’s board of directors. “We believe that Zeel has created a disruptive offering in this field,” said Nykin. Launched publicly in January 2012, Zeel has built a national network of practitioners who are set up for online booking on the Zeel site. Zeel requests proof of licensing, certification, and other relevant training and considers a range of criteria before approving a practitioner as a “Zeel Expert,” according to the website. The company was founded in July 2010.

Merrick Pet Care Acquires Castor & Pollux
Merrick Pet Care Inc. (Amarillo, Texas) has agreed to acquire Castor & Pollux Natural PetWorks (Clackamas, Ore.), a natural and organic pet food business. Terms were not disclosed. The acquisition allows Merrick to expand its branded portfolio in the super premium pet food segment and to make fuller use of its manufacturing facilities. Castor & Pollux is best known as the creator of the Organix brand of pet food. The super premium and natural/organic segments of the total pet food category are estimated at $6.2 billion, according to market data cited by Merrick. Retail sales of dog and cat food overall exceeded $19 billion in 2011.

L’Oreal Buys Cadum Soap Company
L'Oreal of France has acquired the soap company Cadum International SA (Paris) from the Anglo-French private equity firm Milestone Capital Partners. Cadum makes soap, baby items, and other personal care products. Milestone said the sale returned around six times its original €17.5 investment made in 2007; and under its ownership, Cadum sales grew from €16 million in 2007 to €58 million in 2011 as a result of new product launches in shower gel, baby products, and deodorants. Cadum was founded in 1907 and introduced organic products in 2009.

UNFI Joins Investment Partnership
Swander Pace Capital is teaming with Jefferson Capital Partners and distributor United Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI, Providence, R.I.) in forming Branch Brook Holdings LLC to invest in North American organic and natural consumer product companies. Publicly traded UNFI reported net sales of $4.53 billion for fiscal 2011, up 20.6%. Swander Pace’s current portfolio investments include Applegate organic and natural deli meats, ReNew Life probiotics, and Lavo eco-friendly household products.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for April 20, 2012

Transactions
Sun Capital Acquires Global Contract Manufacturer
Bunge Acquires Climate Change Capital
Organics Recycler Raises $110 Million
Coca Cola Buys Majority Stake in ZICO
Mistral Invests in Airport Spa Services Company
Oak Hill Acquires Control of Earth Fare
Pacific Natural Farms Join Organic Valley
Tea Retailer Teavana Acquires Canadian Chain Teaopia
Electronic Cigarette Firm NJOY Receives $20 Million Investment
Oatworks Co-Brands with Biovelop
Online Food Ordering Heats Up in Europe

Sun Capital Acquires Global Contract Manufacturer
An affiliate of Sun Capital Partners Inc. has acquired CornerStone Research & Development Inc. (Ogden, Utah), a global contract manufacturer of branded vitamins and dietary supplements, from Mitsui & Co. (USA) Inc. Terms were not disclosed. CornerStone develops, produces, and packages more than 500 capsule, tablet, and specialty powder products for its customers, including vitamins, botanicals, energy and weight management supplements, probiotics, and anti-aging/general wellness supplements. It operates a 190,000-square-foot automated manufacturing facility capable of producing over 5 billion tablets and capsules annually. Sun Capital has prior experience in the nutrition industry with former affiliated portfolio company Elan Nutrition, a manufacturer of snack and nutrition bars. Elan nearly doubled revenue during Sun’s ownership period.

Bunge Acquires Climate Change Capital
Bunge Limited (White Plains, N.Y.), the global agribusiness and food giant, has acquired Climate Change Capital Limited (CCC, London), a manager of funds that invest in companies, projects, and technologies for climate change mitigation or adaptation. Climate Change Capital also manages one of the world's largest private sector carbon funds, which invests in projects that generate emission reduction credits, most of them under the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Credits have been trading at historically low prices in recent months due to oversupply in Europe, leading some investment banks and brokers to exit the market. New CEO of CCC Alfred Evans has advised Bunge on its internal emission reduction initiatives since 2005, overseeing services provided by Bunge’s Ecoinvest Carbon subsidiary and serving as chief investment officer for the Bunge Emissions Group’s emissions assets. Bunge has been active in carbon and sustainability-related markets for a long time, a spokesperson told NCN. “Importantly, Bunge will provide a stable platform and global reach for CCC. Bunge will continue to be present in carbon markets and others of relevance to agribusiness, and will look at opportunities in cleantech and renewable energy advisory services.”

Organics Recycler Raises $110 Million
Harvest Power (Waltham, Mass.), which extracts energy and nutrient-rich soils from organic waste materials, has announced a $110 million series C financing. True North Venture Partners led the investment, with American Refining and Biochemical participating alongside existing investors including Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, DAG Ventures  and Generation Investment Management. Funds will be used to meet growing demand nationally from communities seeking sustainable, economical solutions for managing organic materials. Harvest sold millions of bags of organic soils and mulches at retail in 2011 and expects to complete construction this year of two large anaerobic digestion facilities. “Harvest presents a game-changing investment opportunity for True North: The company intersects our core interests of energy, water, agriculture and waste, and its business model is also highly scalable,” said Michael Ahearn, managing partner of True North Venture Partners. Harvest Power was founded in 2008.

Coca Cola Buys Majority Stake in ZICO
After buying a minority stake in ZICO coconut water (El Segundo, Calif.) for $15 million in 2009, Coca Cola has exercised its option to purchase a majority share in the rapidly growing beverage company. Details were not disclosed. The market for coconut water beverages grew 100% in 2011, taking the combined retail sales value of the U.S. and European markets to over $265 million, according to New Nutrition Business, which anticipated another 50% growth in 2012. Other market estimates are even higher. ZICO was founded by Mark Rampolla in 2004 and is one of three brands vying for leadership in the U.S. coconut water market. Privately owned Vita Coco signed a distribution agreement with Dr. Pepper Snapple Group in 2010; its revenue has reportedly grown from $40 million in 2010 to nearly $100 million in 2011. Meanwhile, PepsiCo is expanding distribution of the O.N.E. brand, in which it took a majority stake in 2010. ZICO was a presenting company at NCN III in 2008 and concluded its first transaction with Coca-Cola some months later.

Mistral Invests in Airport Spa Services Company
Mistral Equity Partners has invested growth capital in XpresSpa (New York, N.Y.), an airport retailer of spa services and products with 38 locations in the United States and The Netherlands. Services include massage, reflexology, manicures, pedicures, facials, and waxing. CEO Moreton Binn and President Marisol Binn developed XpresSpa 10 years ago to address changes in the airport environment since 9/11. As a result of increased security, travelers are spending more time at airports before flights, often dealing with lines and delays, the company said. XpresSpa has turned this downtime into productive time, helping travelers to relax and focus on personal care and wellness. “This concept pioneered and defined the airport spa segment,” said Andrew Heyer, managing partner of Mistral Equity. “XpresSpa has enormous untapped growth potential.”

Oak Hill Acquires Control of Earth Fare
Oak Hill Capital Partners has acquired approximately 80% of Earth Fare (Fletcher, N.C.) from Monitor Clipper Partners in a transaction that values the company at approximately $300 million. Oak Hill Capital is investing in partnership with Earth Fare's current management team and Monitor Clipper, which retains a significant minority interest. Founded in 1975, Earth Fare is one of the larger natural and organic food retailers in the country with 25 stores across the Southeast and Midwest. The chain has banned high-fructose corn syrup; artificial and trans-fats; artificial colors, flavors and preservatives; as well as antibiotics and synthetic growth hormones in fresh meats and dairy. “We are very pleased by the growth and financial performance of Earth Fare, which has more than quadrupled run-rate EBITDA since we acquired the company in 2006,” said Charlie Yoon, a partner at Monitor Clipper.

Pacific Natural Farms Join Organic Valley
Three Oregon dairies run by the family of Pacific Natural Foods’ founder Chuck Eggert have joined the farmer-owned cooperative, Organic Valley (La Farge, Wis.). Established in 2006, the farms include Country Lane, Mayfield, and Valley Falls Dairies which together employ 45 people in the heart of Oregon’s Willamette Valley. The farms supply milk, cream, and crème fraiche for use in Pacific Natural Foods’ soups and culinary products. Being in the Organic Valley co-op allows Pacific to be a part of a larger supply cycle so that it always has access to ingredients and can share excess milk.

Tea Retailer Teavana Acquires Canadian Chain Teaopia
Publicly traded Teavana Holdings Inc. (Atlanta, Ga.) has agreed to acquire specialty tea retailer Teaopia Ltd. (Concord, Ontario) for $26.9 million in cash. Founded in 2005, Teaopia sells loose-leaf teas, tea-related merchandise, and beverages in its 46 company-owned stores located primarily in high-end malls across Canada. For the 12 months ended January 31, 2012, Teaopia generated net sales of approximately $17 million and opened 12 new stores. “With this acquisition, we immediately establish a strong foothold in many of the best mall locations in Canada,” said Andrew Mack, chairman and CEO of Teavana. “As we integrate and rebrand the Teaopia stores, we look forward to leveraging our shared best practices and welcoming the Teaopia employees into the Teavana family.” Founded in 1997, Teavana is a specialty tea retailer with more than 200 stores.

Electronic Cigarette Firm NJOY Receives $20 Million Investment
NJOY (Scottsdale, Ariz.), an electronic cigarette company, has received a $20 million investment from Catterton Partners. The investment will be used to accelerate NJOY’s brand awareness, growth and other business development opportunities. NJOY offers rechargeable and non-rechargeable electronic cigarette products that provide nicotine and tobacco and menthol flavors without smoke or odor, and cost less than traditional cigarettes. Other Catterton investments have included Kettle Chips, Odwalla, and Sweet Leaf Tea.

Oatworks Co-Brands with Biovelop
PromOat, the oat beta glucan ingredient from Swedish company and NCN IX presenter Biovelop, has been chosen by U.S. brand Oatworks for its new line of healthy oat and fruit smoothies. PromOat, which is naturally derived using Biovelop’s patented technology, enables the health benefits of oats to be incorporated into smoothies, providing satiety and energy. Oatworks smoothies will co-branded with PromOat. “Our objective with Oatworks was to create a range of delicious, natural and genuinely healthy products, which allow our customers to enjoy the incredible benefits of oatmeal while on the go,” said Tom First, managing partner at First Beverage Group, which is managing the Oatworks product line, and one of the “two Toms” who co-founded Nantucket Nectars.

Online Food Ordering Heats Up in Europe
European online food ordering company Delivery Hero, one of Berlin’s hottest startups, according to thenextweb.com, has raised another round of funding, bringing its total capital raised to 40 million euros. The new capital will be used to acquire OnlinePizza Norden Group. Investors in Delivery Hero include runet, e-Tengelmann, Kite Ventures, Holtzbrinck Ventures, Point Nine Capital and Team Europe. Delivery Hero co-founder and CEO Niklas Östberg used to be chairman of OnlinePizza Norden. The purchase adds 70 employees to Delivery Hero, bringing its total to 350 staff. In March, Delivery Hero acquired a controlling interest in Germany’s Lieferheld and a stake in hungryhouse (UK).  Delivery Hero runs operations in Germany, U.K., Sweden, Finland, Poland, Austria, Switzerland, Russia, Australia, and Mexico, partnering with more than 19,000 restaurants. The company expects total 2012 revenue to exceed 250 million euros, serving more than 4 million customers, according to thenextweb.com, citing Deutsche Startups. Rival Just-Eat is another high-growth European online food ordering company with a $48 million round of VC funding in March 2011, and seven acquisitions last year in the UK, Italy, Switzerland, Brazil, Canada and India.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for April 5, 2012

Transactions
New Chapter Sold to P&G
Schiff Acquires Airborne for $150 million
Annie’s IPO Raises $95 million
Honest Company Raises $27 Million
ChromaDex Grants Marketing Rights for Latin America
Yummly Raises $6 Million
Enterome Raises €5 Million to Develop Biomarkers
French Developer LNC Raises €3.5 million in Second Round
TreeHouse Foods Acquires Naturally Fresh
Titan Fitness Acquires Fitness Connection

New Chapter Sold to P&G
New Chapter Inc. (Brattleboro, Vt.), a veteran of the herbal supplement industry since 1982, is being acquired by Procter & Gamble (Cincinnati, Ohio). The deal marks P&G’s entry into the dietary supplement market. Terms were not disclosed, but New Chapter has around 180 employees and 100 sales reps. New Chapter, which is known for whole food supplements with organic ingredients, will become a wholly owned subsidiary. Founders Paul and Barbi Schulick will remain with the company as executive vice president of science and innovation and vice president of organization and culture, respectively. P&G said it was not looking to make changes to New Chapter, which is expected to keep its Brattleboro headquarters. The deal has elicited a mixed reaction in natural product industry circles, and it remains to be seen how natural channel retailers will respond. In an interview with Nutraingredients-USA, a P&G spokeswoman said the acquisition “enables P&G to enter the premium, specialty segment of the VMS category with a meaningful $100 million business on day one.”

Schiff Acquires Airborne
Publically traded Schiff Nutrition International Inc. (Salt Lake City, Utah) has acquired Airborne Inc. (Minneapolis, Minn.), a maker of effervescent immunity-boosting supplements, for $150 million in cash. The seller is GF Capital Private Equity Fund LP, which acquired a majority stake in Airborne in 2009. Airborne generated around $70 million in net revenue for the year ended Feb. 29, 2012. Airborne competes with Alacer Corp., the manufacturer of Emergen-C effervescent powdered drink mixes, which was acquired by Pfizer Inc. in February 2012. Schiff posted net sales of $213.6 million in fiscal year ended May 31, 2011, up 4%. Its flagship products include the Move Free joint health and MegaRed krill oil brands. In 2011 it purchased the probiotics company Ganeden Biotech Inc. for $40 million in cash.

Annie’s Completes IPO
Organic and natural food veteran Annie's Inc. (Berkeley, Calif.) raised $95 million from an initial public offering last Tuesday that priced shares at $19 each, up from an earlier proposed price of $14-16. The following day, Annie’s stock kicked off at $31.11, the biggest opening day gain for an IPO this year and an indicator of keen interest in the natural and organic sector. Founded in 1989 as Annie’s Homegrown, the company is best known for its macaroni and cheese packaged entrees and Bernie the rabbit logo. The lion’s share of IPO proceeds will go to investors, notably Solera Capital, which owned around 90% of Annie’s and was expected to retain 63% post-IPO, according to an SEC filing. From 2002 to 2005, Solera Capital made several significant equity investments in the company, acquiring control and providing capital for internal growth and acquisitions, including Fantastic Foods and Napa Valley Kitchens. For the nine months ended in December 2011, Annie's generated sales of $98.3 million, up 21% from a year earlier. Annie’s was a presenter at NCN V in 2009 in San Francisco looking primarily to sell, but presumably was unable to attract its target valuation that was substantially less than the valuation it received in this week’s IPO.

Honest Company Raises $27 Million
The Honest Company (Los Angeles, Calif.), founded by Golden Globe-nominated actress Jessica Alba, has raised $27 million in a Series A financing led by General Catalyst, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Institutional Venture Partners. The e-commerce site offers monthly subscriptions to natural, non-toxic baby and family products like diapers, wipes, and bath and skin care items. Honest Company also formulates and manufactures household cleaning products such as laundry detergent, surface cleaners and dish soap, all of which are made in the United States.

ChromaDex Grants Marketing Rights for Latin America
ChromaDex Corporation (Irvine, Calif.) and OPKO Health Inc. (Miami, Fla.), a multinational biopharmaceutical and diagnostics company, have entered into a strategic alliance. ChromaDex has licensed all of its new product offerings and health care technologies to OPKO for distribution and business development throughout Latin America. First to be commercialized are BluScience, ChromaDex's recently launched line of dietary supplements, and pTeroPure, a proprietary form of pterostilbene, an antioxidant found in blueberries. OPKO recently made a $1 million investment in ChromaDex as part of a private placement. ChromaDex was established in 1999 in response to growing demand for natural product reference standards, materials, and services.

Yummly Raises $6 Million
Yummly.com, a recipe search platform, has closed a $6 million Series A funding round led by Physic Ventures with contributions from Unilever Corporate Ventures, Harrison Metal Capital, First Round Capital, Intel Capital, The Harvard Common Press, and angel investors. Yummly will use funds to expand its team, scale marketing and add features and functionality to the site. Launched in 2010 by foodies, Yummly is attracting more than 4 million unique visitors each month. The site filters recipes by nutrition, diet, allergy, price, cuisine, time, taste, and source. “Though the kitchen is the social hub of the house… it’s the last room in the house, in many ways, where there has been real mass digital media disruption,” said Physic Ventures Partner Andy Donner in a Forbes.com interview.

Enterome Raises €5 Million to Develop Biomarkers
Enterome (Paris, France) has raised €5 million in a series A funding round led by Seventure Partners and Lundbeckfond Ventures. Enterome is developing biomarkers and therapies for metabolic and inflammatory medical conditions associated with abnormalities of bacterial composition of the human intestine such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. It has an exclusive collaboration with INRA (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique) for a unique metagenomic technology platform to develop and commercialize these biomarkers, which will be capable of stratifying disease status, screening populations at risk and accelerating drug development. “Measurement and modulation of the gut microbiota’s role in health and disease presents the opportunity to impact medicine in an entirely new and unexplored way,” said Dusko Ehrlich, scientific founder of Enterome. Seventure also participated in an earlier €1.5 million seed financing round. An NCN Cornerstone Investor, healthcare lifestyle products represent one of Seventure’s four favorite sectors in the life sciences.

French Developer LNC Raises €3.5 million in Second Round
Les Laboratoires Nutrition & Cardiometabolisme completed its second funding round totaling €3.5 million. The round was led by Seventure Partners accompanied by a group of investors from southwest France (IRDI, GSO Capital, Aqui-Invest) and LNC’s historical shareholder EPI. LNC is a medical nutrition company specializing in the major metabolic diseases (diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cognitive decline), devoted to designing and developing targeted medical nutrition products for the reduction of cardiometabolic risk factors and improvement of perioperative nutrition for bariatric surgery. Next steps for LNC are to to conduct large scale clinical studies and then offer products to pharmaceutical and industrial partners for licensing or acquisition. In 2010, LNC’s first round raised €1.5 million to initiate clinical studies.

TreeHouse Foods Acquires Naturally Fresh
TreeHouse Foods Inc. (Oakbrooke, Ill.) has agreed to pay $25 million in cash for Naturally Fresh Inc. (Atlanta, Ga.), a maker of refrigerated dressings, sauces, marinades and dips. Naturally Fresh generates annual revenues of approximately $80 million. The products are seen as a complement to TreeHouse’s range of private label shelf stable dressings, sauces and salsa and are expected to “further develop our presence within the growing segment of fresh and good for you foods,” said Sam K. Reed, chairman, president and CEO of TreeHouse.

Titan Fitness Grows Gym Chain
Titan Fitness LLC (McLean, Va.) has acquired Fitness Connection (Houston), a nine gym chain that grew to 17 when Titan converted eight of its previously owned gyms in North Carolina and Nevada to the Fitness Connection brand late last year. Besides growing a national chain, Titan plans to expand its corporate wellness business. Founded by fitness industry veterans and business executives to build, acquire and operate health clubs, Titan has secured private equity backing led by WestView Capital Partners and including National City Equity Partners. Titan said it is targeting health clubs with at least $1.5 million in regional EBITDA and aiming to have more than 60 locations in five years.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for March 13, 2012

Transactions
General Mills Buys Food Should Taste Good
Sprouts to Merge With Sunflower Farmers Market
Imperial Sugar Sells Stake in Wholesome Sweeteners
Elevation Brands Combines Ian’s and Blue Horizon
Dole Acquires Mrs. May’s Naturals
Kleiner Perkins Invests in Soy Company Savage River Farms
Mixt Green Returns to its Founders
Organic Urban Farm Gets Financing
Wessanen Acquires Clipper Teas
Khosla Invests in Nu-Tek Salt
Attitude Drinks Closes $1 Million Placement
Hershey’s Invests Additional $6 Million in Mix1

General Mills Buys Food Should Taste Good
General Mills (Minneapolis, Minn.) has acquired Food Should Taste Good (FSTG, Needham Heights, Mass.), a maker of natural chips and crackers. FSTG will become part of Small Planet Foods, General Mills’ natural and organic business, which houses the Cascadian Farm, Muir Glen, and LÄRABAR brands. “This acquisition further positions us for continued growth with a great new brand in an entirely new category in our natural and organic business,” said Michele Meyer, president of Small Planet Foods. Pete Lescoe founded FSTG in 2006; he will continue with the business as creative director. Venture capital fund Sherbrooke Capital, an NCN Cornerstone Investor, invested in the company in 2007. FSTG was a presenting company at NCN’s VI Investor Meeting in New York.

Sprouts to Merge With Sunflower Farmers Market
Two leading natural food retail chains, Sprouts Farmers Market (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Sunflower Farmers Market (Boulder, Colo.), have agreed to a merger. The combined company will operate 139 stores under the Sprouts Farmers Market name with projected 2012 revenues approaching $2 billion. Thirteen new stores are planned for 2012. Sprouts was founded in 2002 by members of the Boney family, which ran Henry’s Marketplace until 1999 when it was sold to Wild Oats Markets. Sprouts is majority-owned by investment funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management, LLC.  Sunflower, co-founded in 2002 by Libby Cook and Randy Clapp, is privately owned by the co-founders, management and KMCP Advisors. The combined company will continue to be majority-owned and controlled by Apollo. Whole Foods Market had sales of $10 billion in FY2011.

Imperial Sugar Sells Stake in Wholesome Sweeteners
Imperial Sugar Company (Sugar Land, Texas) is selling its 50% stake in Wholesome Sweeteners Inc. (Sugar Land, Texas) to the Arlon Group for estimated net proceeds of $55-60 million. A supplier of organic and fair trade certified sweeteners, including sugar, sucanat, agave, honey, molasses, and stevia, Wholesome Sweeteners was founded in 2001 as a joint venture between Imperial Sugar Company and Edward Billington & Son, Ltd. (U.K.). Arlon will become the majority shareholder by acquiring a portion of Billington’s ownership interest and all of Imperial Sugar Company’s. Wholesome Sweeteners’ management will increase its ownership stake, helping to guarantee “continuity of the consumer focused philosophy and entrepreneurial culture,” the company stated.  Imperial still has its interest in Natural Sweet Ventures, a joint venture with PureCircle Ltd., which focuses on stevia products.

Elevation Brands Combines Ian’s and Blue Horizon
Elevation Brands LLC, (Framingham, Mass.), a new food company dedicated to products that address the environment, sustainability and health, is being backed by Renewal2, a social investment fund, and other investors. Elevation Brands’ two charter lines are Ian's Natural Foods, which produces natural, allergen-reduced prepared meals, and Blue Horizon Wild, which uses sustainably sourced, wild caught fish and shellfish in its frozen seafood entrees.

Dole Acquires Mrs. May’s Naturals
Dole Food Company, Inc. (Westlake Village, Calif.) has acquired Mrs. May’s Naturals (Sun Valley, Calif.), a provider of healthier snacks like bars and freeze-dried fruit. The brand will become part of Dole’s Packaged Foods division, boosting offerings in the health and nutrition space. A family-run business founded by two brothers in 2002, Mrs. May’s had 2011 revenues of approximately $16 million. The snack line includes vegan, gluten-free, and kosher products, providing a fit with the Dole Nutrition Plus product line designed to improve health and wellness through diet, stated David DeLorenzo, Dole’s president and CEO.

Kleiner Perkins Invests in Soy
Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers has invested in Savage River Farms, a Maryland company commercializing soy-based vegetarian “chicken” using technology developed by a professor of biological engineering at the University of Missouri. The new meat alternative is said to reproduce the texture of meat better than other products, using IP licensed by Savage River from the University of Missouri. The University has taken equity in the company and secured a commitment for a Missouri plant.  Dramatic growth of soy food sales followed the 1999 FDA approval of a health claim linking soy with heart disease reduction. Soy meat alternatives reached $636 million in sales in 2009 out of a total soy food market of $4.5 billion, according to Soyatech and SPINS.

Mixt Green Returns to its Founders
Founders of the Mixt Greens “eco-gourmet” salad chain (San Francisco, Calif.) have reacquired the business after selling it in 2009 to Inventages Whealth Management, a private equity and venture fund set up by Nestlé S.A. Terms were not disclosed. Two of the original partners who created Mixt Greens in 2005 said they wanted to bring Mixt Greens back to its roots. The chain currently operates six restaurants.

Organic Urban Farm Gets Financing
Home Town Farms (San Diego, Calif.) has closed a series A round of funding from investors including Bill Scripps, Ted Waitt’s Avalon Capital and Greg Horn’s Specialty Nutrition Group to build its first vertical organic urban farm in San Diego, Calif. Home Town Farms is pioneering a farming and distribution method for producing locally grown vine-ripened organic vegetables and berries. According to the company, these methods require 70% less land compared with traditional farming and reduce water use by 85% and fertilizer use by 80%.  “By locating the retail store right at the state-of-the-art greenhouse where the food is grown, each Home Town Farms location is essentially a farmer’s market open every day of the year,” said Greg Horn of Specialty Nutrition Group and former CEO of General Nutrition Centers and Garden of Life.

Wessanen Acquires Clipper Teas
Royal Wessanen NV (Amsterdam, Netherlands) has acquired Clipper Teas Limited (Beaminster, Dorset, U.K.), a leader in Britain’s organic and fair trade tea market. Clipper reported revenue of £16 million in 2011. Clipper Teas will be integrated into Wessanen’s U.K. business, which includes the Kallo and Whole Earth brands. Clipper was started in 1984 by a husband and wife team and was sold in 2008 to FF&P Private Equity reportedly for close to £30 million. Wessanen is a leading company in the European organic food market, generating revenue of €706 million in 2011. Between 1972 and 2003, Wessanen acquired over 20 companies, mostly in Western Europe but also in the United States, either in food production or distribution. In 2009 it sold U.S. health food distributor Tree of Life Inc. to Kehe Food Distributors for $190 million to reduce debt and strengthen its European business.

Khosla Invests in Nu-Tek Salt
Khosla Ventures has made a significant investment in Nu-Tek Salt LLC (Minnetonka, Minn.), adding a major partnership and equity position to the company. Funds will be used to increase capacity to meet demand from food companies seeking to reduce sodium levels in their products. Using patented technology, Nu-Tek removes the bitterness commonly associated with potassium chloride. The product contains less than 0.1 % sodium and can be blended with salt (sodium chloride) to achieve sodium reduction in foods.

Attitude Drinks Closes $1 Million Placement
Attitude Drinks (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.), the creator of Phase III Recovery, a protein recovery drink based on low fat milk, closed a $1 million private placement last month. Investors include two of the company’s founding institutions along with a small group of accredited high net worth investors. Roy G. Warren, CEO of Attitude Drinks, said, “Phase III is now gaining traction in the market place, and we have developed a number of new accounts with many more on the horizon. These new sales channels require marketing and sales support.”

Hershey’s Invests Additional $6 Million in Mix1
The Hershey Company (Hershey, Pa.) recently invested an additional $6 million in mix1 beverage company (Boulder, Colo.), giving it a 69% controlling interest in the maker of protein-based sports and meal replacement drinks. Hershey’s invested $5.75 million in the company last year. The recent investment was part of a capital raise of $7.25 million by mix1 in February. Mix1 was a presenting company at NCN VII in San Francisco.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• News for February 28, 2012

Transactions
Pfizer acquires Alacer Corp.
ChromaDex Raises $11.2 Million from Stock Sale
IDG and SAIF Make E-Commerce Investment in India
Jurlique Sold to Japanese Cosmetics Giant Pola Orbis
Vancouver Yoga Company Raises $9 Million
Frutarom Makes Brazilian Company Its Third Acquisition this Year
Seed Funding for UK Ethical Shopping Portal
Vita Coco Invests in Coco Café
Jones Soda to Raise $3.2 Million
Blue Pacific Gets Investment from Wilmar International
General Mills To Buy Brazilian Food Company Yoki
Convenientcast Acquires Relaxation Drink
Deyu of China Purchases Maker of Fruit and Soybean Products
BASF Acquires Enzyme Technology from Dinevo

Pfizer acquires Alacer Corp.
Pfizer Inc. has acquired privately-held California-based Alacer Corp. the maker and distributor of Emergen-C products. Alacer produces almost 500 million packets of Emergen-C annually, and products are sold in health food stores, supermarkets, drug stores, mass merchandisers and club stores.. “We are very pleased that the Emergen-C family of products will become part of Pfizer’s portfolio,” said Paul Sturman, president of Pfizer Consumer Healthcare. “We expect that our global network and deep expertise in dietary supplements combined with our desire to provide consumers with high-quality products will make Emergen-C more accessible than it has ever been before.” Pfizer obtained the Centrum and Caltrate brands with its 2009 acquisition of Wyeth and it remains the world’s largest pharmaceutical company with revenues of $50 billion. Terms of the transaction are not yet disclosed but NCN estimates Alacer annual revenues are close to $150 million.

ChromaDex Raises $11.2 Million from Stock Sale
ChromaDex Corporation (Irvine, Calif.), a developer and supplier of natural ingredients to the dietary supplement, food & beverage, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries, has raised gross proceeds of approximately $7.475 million from a registered direct offering of common stock. The company has also closed a previously announced sale to investors, including several members of ChromaDex's management, raising gross proceeds of approximately $3.7 million. ChromaDex plans to use the net proceeds primarily to fund its recently launched BluScience retail consumer line of dietary supplements. ChromaDex supplies phytochemical reference standards, botanical reference materials, and research grade materials to the natural products industry.

IDG and SAIF Make E-Commerce Investment in India
IDG Ventures India and SAIF Partners have invested in a $14 million Series B financing in Brainbees Solutions Pvt Ltd. (Pune, India), which owns the FirstCry.com and GoodLife.com brands, two of India’s leading e-commerce sites in babycare and beauty, respectively. SAIF Partners previously invested $4 million in Brainbees in May 2011. According to an article in the Economic Times of India, the funding underscores the frenetic deal-making across the country's e-commerce industry. In a November 2011 report, “India Goes Digital,” Avandus Capital said India now has 80 million Internet users, and the country’s e-commerce industry is estimated to grow to $24 billion by 2015 from $6.3 billion in 2011.

Jurlique Sold to Japanese Cosmetics Giant Pola Orbis
JH Partners has completed the sale of skin care company Jurlique International (Mount Barker, Australia) to Pola Orbis of Japan for an enterprise value of $358 million, representing  approximately 3.8x Jurlique’s annual sales. Pola Orbis Group had consolidated net sales of more than $2 billion. in fiscal 2010, of which 84% was generated by its cosmetics business. Founded in 1985 and acquired by JH Partners in 2006, Jurlique makes its skincare products using plants and herbs grown on its own 153 acre biodynamic farm in the Adelaide Hills. Over the past five years, the company has grown from a niche Australian brand into a global brand, with particular traction in Asia. Over the years, JH Partners has also invested in Bare Escentuals and Peet’s Coffee & Tea.

Vancouver Yoga Company Raises $9 Million
Yoga and wellness company YYoga (Vancouver, B.C.) has raised $9 million from Fiore Capital Corp. and Beedie Capital Partners. The lead investors were joined by undisclosed private investors. Funds will be used for expansion, specifically in the Toronto market. YYoga operates seven centers throughout British Columbia, running over 700 classes per week, and plans to open two new Vancouver locations. YYoga was founded by Lara Kozan and Terry McBride in 2007.

Frutarom Makes Brazilian Company Its Third Acquisition this Year
Frutarom Industries Ltd. has agreed to acquire Mylner Indústria E Comércio Ltda of Brazil for approximately $15.7 million. Mylner develops, manufactures and markets flavor solutions, focusing mainly on sweet flavors for beverages and baked goods, and natural flavor products. Mylner’s revenues have grown from $6.8 million in 2007 to $11.4 million in 2011, with sales up 8% in the last year. Frutarom intends to utilize Mylner's production, development, sales and management, capacities as a base for its business in the region. Frutarom made five acquisitions in 2011; Mylner will be its third in 2012. Frutarom reported 2010 revenues of $450 million and Q3 2011 revenues of $135 million.

Seed Funding for Ethical Shopping Portal
Ethical Community (London, U.K.), an online, eco-friendly marketplace, has secured a $316,640 (£200,000) round of seed funding from angel investors. The goal of Ethical Community is to give small sellers a platform to sell products and to give consumers the tools and information they need to demystify ethical shopping. Since the site launched in October 2010 it has attracted hundreds of eco sellers selling products, ranging from Fairtrade coffee, to handmade natural soap, to up-cycled t-shirts.

Vita Coco Invests in Coco Café
Coconut water company Vita Coco (New York, N.Y.) has invested in Coco Café (Santa Monica, Calif.), a producer of a ready-to-drink beverage of fresh coconut water and organic, fair-trade espresso with milk. Coco Café was started by Brian McCaslin and Elan Eifer on the beaches of Santa Monica in 2011. “Coco Café adds a new layer of coconut water-fueled functionality to the coffee category and expands the appeal of coconut water for all beverage consumers,” said Michael Kirban, Vita Coco CEO. Privately held Vita Coco is owned by All Market Inc., whose investors include Verlinvest, an NCN Cornerstone Investor. Vita Coco forged a distribution agreement with Snapple Group Inc. in 2010 and competes with NCN presenter ZICO Beverages, which has received investment from Coca Cola, and O.N.E., which is backed by Pepsi. In Germany, NCN presenter Green Coco is one of Europe’s biggest coconut water brands. Nestlé launched Nesfluid beverages, made with coconut water and whey, in 2010. U.S. retail sales of coconut water drinks rose to around $400 million last year, according to industry estimates. Vita Coco’s revenue more than doubled in 2011 to nearly $100 million, the Wall Street Journal reported in February.

Jones Soda to Raise $3.2 Million
Jones Soda Co. (Seattle, Wash.) has entered into a definitive agreement with investors to sell common stock and warrants in a registered direct offering to raise approximately $3.2 million. Proceeds will support cash flow as the company concentrates on increasing sales and distribution and improving the bottom line. “These funds… significantly enhance our financial position and will further enable us to work towards sustainable profitability,” said Bill Meissner, CEO of Jones Soda. Jones operates in the premium soda category and is known for novel flavors, functionality and innovative labeling. For the year ended December 31, 2011, the company expects revenue of around $17.4 million and to achieve 12% growth compared to the prior year for its core product revenue in North America. “We've already achieved significant momentum for one of our key priorities, which was to return growth to our core product line,” said Meissner.

Blue Pacific Gets Investment from Wilmar International
Blue Pacific Flavors (City of Industry, Calif.), a developer and manufacturer of natural and organic fruit flavors, has received a strategic capital investment from the Asian agribusiness group, Wilmar International Ltd. of Singapore. Blue Pacific Flavors joins Wilmar’s group of associated companies but will maintain all domestic production for its U.S. clientele from its headquarter’s manufacturing facility and R&D center. The company will continue all global operations, including its facilities in China and offices in Malaysia, South Korea and the Philippines. Donald F. Wilkes remains CEO and Chairman.

General Mills To Buy Brazilian Food Company Yoki
General Mills (Minneapolis, Minn.) has agreed to acquire Brazilian food company Yoki for $1.16 billion, according to newswire reports. The company is family-run and has nine factories producing cereals, popcorn, juice mixes, snacks and other products. General Mills may be seeking to re-establish production in Brazil, where it currently sells only imported products. Yoki has annual revenues of more than R$1 billion, or around $583 million, according to a post on the Brazil-U.S. Council website. General Mills is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Convenientcast Acquires Relaxation Drink
Publicly traded Convenientcast, Inc. (Las Vegas, Nev.) has acquired The DSD Network of America, Inc., dba Dewmar International, developer of the Lean Slow Motion Potion relaxation beverage. Targeted at a hip hop youth audience, Lean Slow ingredients include rose hip, acai berry and valerian root extracts and melatonin. Since its 2009 fourth quarter launch, sales of the carbonated beverage have totaled approximately $4 million, according to a company news release. IBISWorld estimates that relaxation drinks grew 50% in  2011 to $74 million in sales and comprised about 0.3% of the fruit juice and functional beverage production industry in 2011. Around 390 relaxation drinks were on the market in 2011; companies in the space include Dream Products LLC, Innovative Beverage Group, and Vacation in a Bottle LLC (viB).

Deyu of China Purchases Maker of Fruit and Soybean Products
Deyu Agriculture Corp. (Beijing, China), a vertically integrated producer and distributor of organic and non-organic corn and grain products, has acquired Shanxi Taizihu Food Co., Ltd. and its subsidiary, Shanxi Huichun Bean Products Co., Ltd. for approximately $5.5 million in cash. The Taizihu Group is in the business of producing and selling fruit beverages under the brand name LongQuan Villa and soybean products under the Huichin brand. The acquisition brings Deyu a well developed product line of over 100 types of processed foods and beverages, such as grain drinks, soybean products, and fruit vinegars and juices.

BASF Acquires Enzyme Technology from Dinevo
BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany) has acquired a novel feed enzyme from Direvo (Cologne, Germany), an industrial biotechnology company. Direvo´s feed enzyme is an optimized and improved form of mannanase with superior temperature stability and efficacy. "Enzymes are one of the focus areas of our innovation activities," said Dr. Martin Jager, global head of BASF´s Animal Nutrition Business. "Direvo´s mannanase is an innovative product with excellent market potential due to its combination of temperature and pelleting stability. This technology package broadens our enzyme know how and enhances our capabilities to make future animal nutrition more efficient and cost-effective." BASF is one of NCN’s new Cornerstone Investor members in 2012.

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for February 8, 2012

Transactions
RelayFoods.com Raises Another $3.1 Million
EVOL Foods Gets Growth Capital
PAI Sells Remaining Interest in Chr Hansen
Monterey Gourmet Foods Sells Sonoma Creamery
Topspin LBO Acquires Stagnito Media
Snap Fitness Acquires Kosama
Neways Completes Restructuring
SkinMedica Merges With Colorescience
Expansion for NCN IX Presenter Greenling

RelayFoods.com Raises Another $3.1 Million
RelayFoods.com (Charlottesville, Va.) has added $3.1 million in new capital from return investor Battery Ventures and other undisclosed investors. The company, which sells groceries, specialty foods, and local farm products online, has raised a total of $5.5 million. Customers choose from among 20,000 local, organic and conventional products online and pick them up from one of Relay’s 60 locations. Relay will also deliver to the customer’s doorstep. “Relay is different than many of its predecessors because it eliminates the costly ‘last mile,’ delivering food from local farmers and merchants to customers at convenient area pickup sites,” said Brian O’Malley, general partner at Battery Ventures. “With how much carnage there has been in this sector historically, we are very excited about Relay’s near term profitability in each of the Company’s core markets.”

EVOL Foods Gets Growth Capital
EVOL Foods (Boulder, Colo.), a maker of natural and organic frozen meals and snacks, has received a minority growth capital investment from Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG). Details were not released, but the Daily Camera pegged the investment at $4.25 million, citing company officials and regulatory documents. Chef-entrepreneur Phil Anson launched EVOL in 2004 with a line of frozen burritos. In 2009 the company received an investment from Brendan Synnott and Tom Spier. Synnott was a co-founder and Spier the former CFO of Bear Naked Granola, which was purchased in 2007 by Kellogg’s Kashi subsidiary for an estimated $60 million. ACG’s investments include BabyGanics, PawGanics, and The Honest Kitchen. Prior investments by ACG principals include The Nest Collective (Plum Organics and Revolution Foods) and DenTek.

PAI Sells Remaining Interest in Chr Hansen
French private equity firm PAI Partners has reached an agreement with Novo A/S for its remaining 26% stake in the Danish company Chr Hansen, a global supplier of food and nutritional ingredients, including enzymes and probiotics. The sale is valued at about $715.56 million, according to Reuters. Novo A/S is the majority shareholder in Novozymes A/S, which makes industrial enzymes, and healthcare company Novo Nordisk. “We do not intend to take control of Chr Hansen and are excited to support Chr Hansen as a long-term minority shareholder,” said Henrik Gürtler, CEO of Novo A/S. PAI had already reduced its stake in Chr Hansen, most recently through the November 2011 sale of shares to institutional investors. In June 2010, PAI sold 25 million shares when it took Chr Hansen public in a €416 million IPO. PAI Partners bought Chr. Hansen for  €1.1 billion in 2005. Including this latest transaction, PAI’s investment is expected to yield a fourfold return on investment.

Monterey Gourmet Foods Sells Sonoma Creamery
Estate Cheese Group LLC has acquired Sonoma Creamery LLC (Sonoma, Calif.), formerly Sonoma Foods Inc., producer of the Sonoma Jack and Sonoma Cheese brands, from Pulmuone USA Inc. and its subsidiary Monterey Gourmet Foods Inc.(MGF). Monterey has owned the Sonoma Creamery since April 2005; MGF’s other brands include Emerald Valley Organic, Ciba Naturals and Monterey Pasta Company. Estate Cheese Group invests in and manages cheese and dairy brands with a focus on natural, sustainably farmed products. Pulmuone is a U.S. subsidiary of Pulmuone Holdings Co. Ltd. of Korea.

Topspin LBO Acquires Stagnito Media
Topspin LBO, a private equity fund, has acquired Stagnito Media (Deerfield, Ill.), a B2B media company serving the grocery and convenience store industries. Stagnito operates several trade publications, including Convenience Store News, Progressive Grocer, The Gourmet Retailer, Hispanic Retail 360 and Retail Leader. In addition to print, the company has digital, event and custom media offerings. "We especially like the way the company has developed and integrated its platform of magazines, websites, digital products, events and original research," said Steve Lebowitz, managing director at Topspin.

Snap Fitness Acquires Kosama
Snap Fitness (Minneapolis, Minn.), a franchisor of more than 1,200 fitness centers, recently acquired Kosama Complete Body Transformation, a group training program designed to accommodate all fitness levels in a team-like atmosphere. The eight-week program integrates muscle confusion, nutrition and consultation and has a money-back guarantee. Kosama and Snap Fitness franchise opportunities will be owned and operated separately, but the partnership will allow customers “the best of both worlds,” Snap stated. Founded in 2010, Kosama has grown to 19 locations in 5 states and plans to have 75-100 locations by the end of 2012.

Neways Completes Restructuring
Neways Enterprises (Springfield, Utah), a network marketer of dietary supplements and personal care products, said it has completed a comprehensive out-of-court restructuring allowing the company to significantly reduce its debt. As a result of the transaction, private equity firm Z Capital Partners LLC and funds affiliated with SAC Capital Advisors LP will, in the aggregate, own a majority of Neways. Golden Gate Capital will maintain an equity stake in the company. "By eliminating a substantial portion of our debt, we have built a solid financial foundation that will allow us to significantly enhance our operating flexibility and further grow our business,” said Neways CEO Scott St. Clair. Neways entered the Korean market in 2011 and expects to launch in Thailand in 2012.

SkinMedica Merges With Colorescience
SkinMedica Inc. (Carlsbad, Calif.) has announced the acquisition of Colorescience, a mineral makeup company, in a merger transaction. “We are excited to add these highly complementary product offerings to expand our presence in the physician channel,” said Ted Schwarz, SkinMedica president. “With Colorescience, we can now offer our physician customers three categories of patient care – skin care, non-surgical procedures, and now mineral makeup.” SkinMedica is a portfolio company of VMG Partners.

Expansion for Greenling's Home Delivery Service
Greenling (Dallas), a web-based home delivery service for fresh, local and organic food, has formed a unique relationship with the City of Allen, Texas. With Greenling as a catalyst, the Allen Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) plans to support the establishment of a Local Food Hub, where other small producers can locate and share resources to build their local food businesses, creating jobs and expanding the availability of locally grown food. AEDC is investing $200,000 over five years, according to a report by KDAF-TV. Greenling will serve the majority of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex from its new Allen location. Greenling was founded by CEO Mason Arnold in 2005. Arnold is a longtime organic activist and entrepreneur; he drafted legislation to create the Organic Advisory Board to the Texas Department of Agriculture and sits on the board of the Sustainable Food Center of Central Texas. Greenling was a presenting company at NCN IX in LA in Fall 2011.

NCN News for January 19, 2012

Transactions
Sara Lee Acquires Luxury Tea Brand
Savoury Flavours of the U.K. Joins Frutarom Family
Naturex Buys Polish Pectin Specialist
Beanitos Raises Funds From 2x and Sweet Leaf
Bradmer Invests in Sustainable Coffee Roaster
UPG Buys Pet Grooming Products
HBC Veterans Acquire Organic Soap Company
Sahale Snacks Receives Follow On Investment
PACT Apparel is First Acquisition for Revelry Brands
Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods Raises Capital
Sterling Group Acquires Fourth DuPont Business
LFE Capital Invests in Fitness on Request

Sara Lee Acquires Luxury Tea Brand
Sara Lee Corp. (Utrecht, The Netherlands) has acquired Tea Forté (Concord, Mass.), a competitor in the luxury tea category, for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 2003 by former Museum of Modern Art designer Peter Hewitt, the teas come in a distinctive signature pyramid shaped infuser and packaging. Tea Forté posted revenues of $12 million in 2011 and is sold in leading hotels, restaurants and luxury retailers internationally. Earlier this year, Sara Lee announced plans to divide into two publicly traded, pure-play entities: one focused on meats in North America and the other focused on the international coffee and tea market. The acqusition comes as Sara Lee prepares to spin off its coffee and tea business in the first half of calendar year 2012.

Savoury Flavours of the U.K. Joins Frutarom Family
Frutarom Industries Ltd. (Haifa, Israel) has acquired British company Savoury Flavours (Holding) Ltd. (SFL) and its subsidiaries for approximately $5.88 million. SFL grew revenues 28% to approximately $6.6 million for the 12 months ended September. 30, 2011. Founded in 1999, SFL develops, manufactures, and markets savory flavors, seasoning compounds, marinades and sauces, with a focus on snacks and convenience foods. SFL's production site is located close to EAFI (acquired by Frutarom on February 1, 2011), which also makes savory products. Frutarom's global savory activities have increased following the acquisition of Nesse, Gewurzmuller and Ch.Hansen, acquired by Frutarom in 2006, 2007 and 2009, respectively, and the acquisition of EAFI, the savory activities of Rieber and of Ch. Hansen and FSI in 2011.

Naturex Buys Polish Pectin Specialist
Naturex (Avignon, France), a global manufacturer of natural ingredients for the food, nutrition, and personal care industries, has acquired Pektowin, a Polish company specializing in apple pectins and fruit and vegetable juice concentrates. Completion is subject to approval by the Polish Ministry of the Treasury. This follows the Fall 2011 purchase of Burgundy Botanical Extracts and is in line with Naturex’s strategy to accelerate international development. Pektowin generates one third of its sales in Poland and two thirds in Russia and other Eastern European countries. For the nine months ended Nov. 30, 2011, Naturex had revenues of €191.2 million, up 12% over the prior year’s comparable period. The firm’s acquisition history includes the rosemary extract business of RFI Ingredients and Hauser, Pure World Inc. plant extracts, Hammer Pharma, HP Botanicals, Chart Corp., and Berkem.

Beanitos Raises Funds From 2x and Sweet Leaf
Beanitos brand bean chips has received an investment from 2x Consumer Products Growth Partners (2x Partners). Managing partners Sharon Kieffer and Andy Whitman joined the company's board of directors. Sweet Leaf Tea founder and former CEO Clayton Christopher also invested and joined the board. According to SPINS data cited by the company, Beanitos is the #1 growth brand in sales dollars and product volume in the corn chips, tortilla chips and all other snacks categories. Based in Austin, Texas, the company was launched in 2010.

Bradmer Invests in Sustainable Coffee Roaster
Bradmer Foods, a consumer focused private equity and venture capital fund, has made an investment in Chesapeake Bay Roasting Co. (CBRC, Crofton, Md.). Adam Borden, Bradmer’s managing director, joined the executive team of CBRC as chief operating officer. Founded in 2002, CBRC uses roasting technologies that lower carbon footprint by nearly 80% compared to traditional roasters, according to its website. The company also pledges 2% of sales to its H2O Initiative for restoring Chesapeake Bay. Other Bradmer investments are Adina for Life, Blue Horizon Wild, Sambazon, and Organic To Go.

UPG Buys Pet Grooming Products
United Pet Group (UPG, Cincinnati, Ohio), a subsidiary of Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc. (Madison, Wis.), has completed the acquisition of FURminator from HKW Capital Partners III, LP and other shareholders. Founded in 2002 and with annual revenues of nearly $40 million, FURminator markets professional quality dog and cat grooming items, including a patented de-shedding tool. The acquisition confers “global leadership… in the large and growing $200 million dog and cat grooming category," according to Dave Lumley, CEO of Spectrum Brands, a global consumer products company with net sales of approximately $3.2 billion. UPG had fiscal 2011 net sales of $579 million.

HBC Veterans Acquire Organic Soap Company
Sensibility Soaps (Beaver Falls, Pa.), an organic personal care manufacturer, has been acquired by Renewal2 and a team of veteran consumer product executives. The new company, renamed Sensible Organics, aims to become the leading custom product development and contract manufacturer of certified natural and organic personal care products. Sensible Organics has a library of innovative natural and organic formulations; it will also expand its chemical-free personal care brand, Nourish Food for Healthy Skin, currently distributed in Whole Foods, GNC and other retailers. Rick Ruffolo was appointed CEO and president. His retail executive experience includes Procter & Gamble, SC Johnson, Bath & Body Works and Yankee Candle. Joining the board is Rob Robillard, formerly worldwide general manager of Kiehl’s and SVP of marketing for L’Oreal Paris.

Sahale Snacks Receives Follow On Investment
Palladium Equity Partners, LLC has made a follow on investment in Sahale Snacks (Seattle, Wash.). Terms were not disclosed, but Palladium has held a significant minority stake in Sahale Snacks since 2007. Sahale Snacks offers premium, natural snack mixes that combine whole nuts with preservative-free fruits and flavors like orange blossom honey, lemongrass, or vanilla bean. "Sahale's highly-differentiated offerings place it in a strong position to capture significant opportunities in the fast-growing $3.6 billion market for snack nuts and seeds," said Yue Guan, vice president of Palladium."The company has more than doubled in size since our initial investment, and we expect substantially more growth.” Sahale was represented by Partnership Capital Growth Advisors (PCGA), a boutique investment bank that focuses exclusively on the healthy, active and sustainable living marketplace. PCGA is NCN’s Investment Banking Partner and co-presented the Health & Wellness Investor Forum at NCN IX in Fall 2011.

PACT Apparel is First Acquisition for Revelry Brands
Revelry Brands (Boulder, Colo.) has purchased PACT Apparel Inc. (Berkeley) in its first acquisition since being founded in 2009. PACT makes premium organic cotton basics that offer consumers sustainably manufactured products connected to social and environmental causes. The acquisition "extends our reach into LOHAS (lifestyles of health and sustainability) consumer categories," said Brendan Synnott, founder of Revelry Brands. Synnott co-founded the granola company Bear Naked in 2002, which was acquired by Kellogg in 2007. Revelry's other investments include Only Natural Pet Store, EVOL Foods, Siggi's Dairy, and Data Garden.

Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods Raises Capital
Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods & Oils (Winnipeg) has secured growth and working capital from White Road Investments and re-investment from Avrio Ventures. The vertically integrated hemp food manufacturer will use funds to strengthen its supply chain to meet growing demand. White Road Investments was founded by Gary Erickson, the owner of Clif Bar & Company; other investments include Big Tree Farms, Public Bikes, Honest Kitchen, Guayaki and Wild Planet Foods. Founded in 1998, Manitoba Harvest has been on Canada’s Profit 100 list of the fastest growing businesses for four of the past five years. Manitoba Harvest was a presenter at the NCN II meeting in 2008 and Avrio is an NCN Cornerstone Investor.

Sterling Group Acquires Fourth DuPont Business
The Sterling Group’s affiliated investment fund, Sterling Group Partners III, LP, has acquired Liqui-Box Corp. (Worthington, Ohio) from DuPont. Liqui-Box is a supplier of bag-in-box flexible packaging to the global dairy, beverage and bulk food markets. The packaging is primarily used in the foodservice industry to package dairy mix for milkshakes and coffee drinks, fountain beverage syrup and pumpable liquid foods such as food concentrates and sauces. The acquisition is Sterling's third investment in its third fund, an $820 million fund raised in 2010. Liqui-Box is the fourth business Sterling has acquired from DuPont.

LFE Capital Invests in Fitness on Request
LFE Capital has made an investment in Fitness On Request (Twin Cities, Minn.). According to LFE, the company manufactures and sells the fitness industry’s first interactive, large screen high-definition, on-demand video technology for health clubs, corporate wellness centers, hotels, multi-family housing complexes, military bases, and senior care centers. The courses, ranging from yoga to kickboxing, can be scheduled by the club, pre-booked by clients online, or launched "on-demand" via the company's proprietary touch screen kiosk.

NCN News January 5, 2012

Transaction Headlines
Annie’s Files for IPO
BrightFarms Raises $4.3 Million
WellnessFX Garners $4 Million in Second Round
Rooibee Red Tea Raises $1 Million
$13.5 Million in Growth Capital for Cooking.com
Tasti D-Lite Acquires Planet Smoothie
MegaFood and Innate Response Receive Investment
Blount Fine Foods Acquires Cape Cod Chowder
Brynwood Buys Kretschmer Wheat Germ Brand From Quaker
Bella Petrella to Acquire Advanced Nutritional Solutions
Online Fitness Marketplace Attracts Seed Monies
NCN Transaction Database Shows Active Year in 2011
Review of NCN IX: Fall 2011 Investor Meeting

Annie’s Files for IPO
Annie's Inc., (Berkeley, Calif.), a maker of natural and organic pasta meals, snacks and condiments, has filed for an IPO aiming to raise $100 million. The nutrition industry veteran, which was founded in 1989 and has a rabbit for its logo, will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol BNNY. In 1995 the company generated $3.6 million in a direct public offering, putting coupons in boxes of mac and cheese to let customers know they were raising money. In 2002, Solera Capital acquired a majority interest in Annie's Homegrown for $20 million. Revenues in Annie’s fiscal year 2011 increased to $117.6 million from $65.6 million in fiscal 2007, a 16% compound annual growth rate. Annie’s was a presenting company at Nutrition Capital Network’s fall investor meeting in San Francisco in 2009.

Hydroponic Grower Raises $4.3 Million
BrightFarms Inc. (New York, N.Y.) has completed a $4.3 million Series A equity financing round. NGEN Partners led the investment, with Emil Capital Partners and BrightFarms founder Ted Caplow participating. BrightFarms finances, builds and operates hydroponic rooftop greenhouses at supermarkets, eliminating time, distance and cost from the produce supply chain. Proceeds will be used for greenhouse construction. “The company will lower the costs of agriculture, transportation and water, the three major cost components of food production. They will disintermediate the supply chain and provide healthier and tastier food for the consumer,” said Peter Grubstein, managing director of NGEN Partners.

WellnessFX Garners $4 Million in Second Round
Health startup WellnessFX (San Francisco) has secured $4 million in series B funding led by new investor Javelin Venture Partners. Existing investors Floodgate and Voyager Capital also participated. The financing comes as WellnessFX is transitioning from beta mode to commercialization, starting in California. WellnessFX is an online personalized wellness service that allows individuals to measure and improve their health by combining diagnostic tools and medical research with one-on-one expert consultations.

Rooibee Red Tea Raises $1 Million
Rooibee Red Tea (Louisville, Ky.) has issued $1 million in Series A preferred stock. Funds will be used to accelerate expansion through its national broker Presence Marketing/Dynamic Presence and distribution partners UNFI and KeHe. Rooibee Red Tea makes certified organic bottled rooibos tea, or red bush tea, which is naturally caffeine-free. The traditional herbal beverage comes from South Africa and has gained popularity as an alternative beverage in the U.S. in recent years. Rooibee’s Watermelon Mint flavored tea won the 2011 North American Tea Championship’s Ready-to-Drink-Flavored/Sweetened category.

$13.5 Million in Growth Capital for Cooking.com
BIA Digital Partners II LP has headed up a $13.5 million growth capital financing for Cooking.com Inc. (Marina del Rey, Calif.), consisting of subordinated debt and a new round of preferred equity. Azure Capital Partners, the company’s lead equity investor, also participated. Proceeds will be used to grow the company’s flagship website and to build out its “Powered By Cooking.com” enterprise-level e-commerce solution. Damien Dovi, a partner at BIA DP, has joined the board of directors as an observer. Cooking.com operates several branded websites, including Rachael Ray Store, Paula Deen Store, Calphalon Store, Betty Crocker Store, and Pillsbury Store.

Tasti D-Lite Acquires Planet Smoothie
Tasti D-Lite (Franklin, Tenn.), a lower-calorie frozen dessert chain, has acquired Planet Smoothie LLC, a 100-unit franchise, from Petrus Brands (Atlanta). The transaction “will provide both brands an opportunity to increase the scale of the combined store network as well as sales at the store level,” said Jim Amos, CEO of Tasti D-Lite. New franchisees will have the option to own and operate in a co-branded store. Planet Smoothie, which opened in 1995, contributed $25 million to Petrus’s $75 million in 2010 revenues, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Petrus also owns Shane’s Rib Shack and in April 2011 launched Planet Living, a juice, frozen yogurt and low calorie smoothie franchise. Tasti D-Lite, which was founded in 1987 and has 170 locations, is majority owned by Snow Phipps Group LLC.

MegaFood and Innate Response Receive Investment
The MegaFood and Innate Response (Derry, N.H.) brands of whole food nutritional supplements (owned by BioSan Laboratories Inc.) have received an investment from 2x Consumer Products Growth Partners. Andrew Whitman, managing partner at 2x Partners, has joined the company's board and will work closely with CEO Robert Craven and the management team. 2x Partners joins majority investor The Riverside Company and owner and former CEO Carl Jackson, who remains a board member. Also joining the board is Bob Burke, founder and principal of Natural Products Consulting Institute and an industry venture partner with 2x Partners. MegaFood is a retail brand, while Innate Response is sold in the practitioner channel.

Blount Fine Foods Acquires Cape Cod Chowder
Blount Fine Foods (Fall River, Mass.), a manufacturer of hand-crafted artisan soups and gourmet dips, sauces and salads, has acquired the Cape Cod Chowder Company (Marion, Mass.). Terms of the asset purchase were not disclosed. Cape Cod Chowder is a regionally distributed manufacturer of high quality fresh and frozen soups, dips and spreads. Blount Fine Foods is the largest manufacturer of lobster bisque in America, with production facilities in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Florida.

Brynwood Buys Wheat Germ Brand From Quaker
Sun Country Foods Inc., a newly formed portfolio company of Brynwood Partners VI LP, has acquired the Kretschmer wheat germ brand and manufacturing facility from The Quaker Oats Company. Sun Country Foods purchased the rights to the Kretschmer brand in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Terms were not disclosed. Sun Country Foods will be headquartered in Boston, but its manufacturing facility will remain in Manhattan, Kan. Kretschmer is the largest wheat germ brand in the United States. Brynwood VI also owns the Balance Bar Company, which it acquired from Kraft Foods Inc. in 2009.

Bella Petrella to Acquire Advanced Nutritional Solutions
Publicly traded Bella Petrella's Holdings Inc. (Orlando, Fla.) has agreed to purchase Advanced Nutritional Solutions LLC (Odessa, Fla.), a specialist in marketing and selling healthy food products to hospitals, assisted living facilities, large institutional customers and mass market retailers. Bella Petrella was scheduled to acquire the company for restricted common stock equal to $100,000. First year revenues for ANS were expected to be more than $6 million, with the second 12 months exceeding $13.5 million. Mark Ballas, founder of ANS, will become president of the wholly owned subsidiary. Bella Petrella produces reduced-acid pasta sauces, salsas and pizza sauce marketed as diabetic friendly and suitable for those with acid reflux; its unaudited revenues for the quarter ended November 30, 2011 were $673,500.

Online Fitness Marketplace Attracts Seed Monies
GAIN Fitness (San Francisco) has raised $650,000 in seed funding from InterWest Partners, Seraph Group and individual investors. GAIN apps deliver personalized workouts across mobile devices and the web. The startup also announced a product scheduled for January release that will create a marketplace where professional trainers can sell fitness multimedia packs. “On one side, you've got fitness experts and personal trainers, who are fantastic but unfortunately inaccessible to a majority of the world's population,” said Nicholas Gammell, GAIN co-founder and CEO. “On the other side are individuals who all want to be fit but have their own unique starting points, body types, aspirations and schedules…. Time flexibility and workout variety are the top two needs of fitness consumers which are currently underserved by this $120 billion industry.”

Disclaimer: NCN does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any NCN news item. Before relying on any NCN News item the information should be independently verified.

• NCN News for December 5, 2011

• NCN News for October 24, 2011
  
  
• NCN News for October 4, 2011

• NCN News for September 13, 2011

• NCN News for August 11, 2011

• NCN News for July 26, 2011

• NCN News for July 12, 2011

• NCN News for June 23, 2011

• NCN News for June 6, 2011

• NCN News for May 19, 2011

• NCN News for May 4, 2011

• NCN News for March 29, 2011

• NCN News for March 15, 2011

• NCN News for February 23, 2011

• NCN News for February 2, 2011

• NCN News for January 16, 2011

• NCN News for December 20, 2010

• NCN News for December 6, 2010

• NCN News for November 23, 2010

• NCN News for November 2, 2010

• NCN News for October 1, 2010  

• NCN News for September 16, 2010

• NCN News for September 9, 2010