Summary of investments and acquisitions in the nutrition, health & wellness, and green product industries.

• NCN News for December 20, 2010

Kiss My Face Gets Growth Investment and New CEO
Caltius Equity Partners, in partnership with Lisa Yarnell and Ron Gordon, has made a growth capital investment in Kiss My Face (Gardiner, N.Y.), a natural personal care (NPC) brand sold through natural, mass, grocery, online and specialty retailers. Founded in 1981 by Bob MacLeod and Steve Byckiewicz on a 200-acre organic farm in New York’s Hudson River Valley, Kiss My Face sells NPC products ranging from moisturizers and liquid soaps to shampoos, shaving creams, toothpaste, lip balms and suntan products. Lisa Yarnell, who has held senior roles at Jane & Company, Coty Inc., Colgate-Palmolive and L’Oreal, will serve as CEO. Ron Gordon, former CEO of Beiersdorf North America and past President and COO of Nice-Pak Products Inc., will serve as non-executive chairman of the board. The founders will remain with the company. “Kiss My Face enjoys significant unaided brand awareness given its limited distribution and is well positioned to unlock tremendous potential for retailers who want to grow and develop natural product segments in their stores,” Yarnell said.

GSK Acquires Maxinutrition
GlaxoSmithKline has agreed to acquire Maxinutrition Group Holdings Ltd., a U.K. manufacturer of protein-enhanced nutrition products, from Darwin Private Equity (London). Subject to approval from the Office of Fair Trading, GSK will pay approximately £162 million in cash, including the repayment of outstanding debt. Darwin acquired Maxinutrition three years ago for £75 million. Maxinutrition is a leading European sports nutrition company by marketshare and has delivered sales growth of approximately 21% CAGR over the last three years, GSK said. It had sales of approximately £36 million for fiscal year ended April 2010. “This deal will give GSK a strong presence in the fast developing protein-based sports nutrition market,” said John Clarke, GSK’s president of consumer healthcare. “The acquisition is a demonstration of GSK’s strategy to expand our Consumer Healthcare business through appropriate bolt-on acquisitions which meet our strict financial criteria.” GSK owns Lucozade sports drinks, which has global sales of approximately £400 million.  

Yoplait Purchases Canadian Yogurt Company Liberté
Yoplait of France has purchased Liberté (Montreal), a leading natural and organic yogurt brand. Details were not disclosed. Liberté was established in 1928 and has evolved into a company aimed at the natural food market. Besides yogurt, the dairy firm also sells fresh cheeses, kefir and grain products, generating revenue of C$175 million in 2009, according to the Montreal Gazette. Liberté has been owned for the last six years by Pineridge Group, which was established in 2004 by Swander Pace Capital, Roynat Capital and management. Lucien Fa, president and CEO of Yoplait, said, “This acquisition illustrates Yoplait’s international investment strategy. Fresh dairy products are expected to enjoy sustained growth, especially outside Europe, and in particular through new consumer segments, and we intend to take advantage of these favorable trends.” In related news, the sale of PAI Partners' 50% stake in Yoplait was expected, according to Reuters. Yoplait is half-owned by PAI the French private equity firm and the farming cooperative Sodiaal. In November Yoplait rejected an unsolicited €1.4 billion bid from Lactalis of France. Yoplait is the world’s second largest brand in fresh dairy products after Danone. Yoplait has marketing partnerships in markets around the world including General Mills in the USA, Glanbia in Ireland and others in Korea, Mexico, Chile and Israel.

Atrium Acquires European Omega-3 Brand Minami Nutrition
Atrium Innovations Inc. (Quebec City), a developer, manufacturer and marketer of professionally endorsed dietary supplements, has acquired Minami Nutrition of Belgium. The niche brand of omega-3 products changed hands for a total cash consideration of $7.38 million before a revenue earn-out payment of up to $2.68 million if growth reaches 20%. The acquisition price EBITDA multiple before earn-out is 5.5. For the past 12 months Minami reported European revenues of approximately $6.71 million derived largely from Belgium, Holland, Ireland and the U.K. Based on a patented manufacturing process, the purity of Minami's omega-3 supplements surpasses industry standards, said Atrium. Moreover, its oil is derived from non-endangered species and has earned Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) certification. “We focus upon and derive a large percentage of our revenues from specialty supplements,” said Pierre Fitzgibbon, Atrium's President and CEO. “The objective is to leverage Atrium's multi-channel distribution and geographic capabilities to considerably increase the penetration level of the Minami brand to achieve its full potential.” Atrium has made at least a dozen significant acquisitions in the dietary supplement arena since 1999. Originally it focused on the heathcare practitioner channel but later expanded into the healthfood store and pharmacy channels. Atrium had 2009 revenues of $320 million and derives nearly half of its sales in the United States.

North Castle Sells Atkins Nutritional
North Castle Partners (Greenwich, Conn.) has sold Atkins Nutritional Holdings Inc. (Melville, N.Y.) to Roark Capital Group (Atlanta) and its affiliates. Terms were not disclosed. The Atkins management team, led by CEO Monty Sharma, will remain with the business and invested alongside Roark Capital. Best known for leading the low-carb diet wave that peaked in early 2004, Atkins filed for bankruptcy in 2005. North Castle acquired a controlling interest in the company in 2007. During North Castle’s tenure, Atkins upgraded its products; reintroduced the brand to retailers and consumers; incorporated new medical and nutritional science; and launched an online diet program based on carbohydrate optimization. Atkins nutrition bars, ready to drink shakes and snacks are sold through 30,000 retail outlets, and the brand ranks as the second-largest U.S. weight management brand at retail, according to Roark. Roark’s portfolio includes FOCUS Brands, owner of Cinnabon, Seattle’s Best, Schlotzsky’s and others.

Sunny Delight sells Western European Juice Business to Orangina Schweppes
Sunny Delight Beverages Co. (SDBC) has announced the pending sale of its Western European Sunny Delight juice drink business to Orangina Schweppes in Western Europe and a company of the Suntory Group. Terms of the transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, were not disclosed. Proceeds will enable SDBC to be debt-free and focus resources on growing its larger and more diversified North American business.

Omega Protein Announces Acquisition of Cyvex Nutrition
Omega Protein Corporation (Houston), a producer of omega-3 fish oil and specialty fish meal products, has acquired Cyvex Nutrition Inc. (Irvine, Calif.), a supplier of branded ingredients to the dietary supplement industry. Matthew Phillips, Cyvex's president and COO, will continue with Cyvex as its new CEO. Gilbert Gluck, founder and formerly owner of Cyvex, will serve as a consultant. “The acquisition of Cyvex provides Omega Protein with a strong line of non-marine based products and a stronger omega-3 distribution network for OmegaPure, our proprietary refined menhaden fish oil," said Joe von Rosenberg, Omega Protein's president and CEO. "We believe that Cyvex has significant growth potential, both organically and as a catalyst for sales of our fish oil to the dietary supplement and functional food markets.” For the nine months ended September 30, 2010, Omega Protein reported revenues of $124.6 million compared with $121.8 million in revenues for the first nine months of 2009. Cyvex’s signature ingredient brands include PomActiv pomegranate extracts, BioVinca vinpocetine, Biovin grape extract, and CranLife cranberry extract.