Yesterday, Village Farms announced closing of the transaction folding its fresh produce operations into Vanguard Food LP. Today, they reveal more about this new joint-venture, backed by private investment firms. They announce the parties intend to provide additional capital, as they expect to continue acquiring other produce assets and operations.

Vanguard Food LP, not to be confused with fresh produce company Vanguard Group International, is a privately-held produce industry joint venture between Kennedy Lewis Investment Management, Sweat Equities, and Village Farms International.

Privatizing
The previously-announced transaction privatized certain assets and operations of Village Farms International’s fresh produce segment. “We’re leveraging decades of leadership in the cultivation, sales, marketing and distribution of produce with the intention of creating a premier branded CPG foods company supporting healthy lifestyles and sustainable farming practices”, the company writes.

The company owns and operates 80-acres of advanced greenhouse facilities in Texas, and through supply agreements with grower partners in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, sources and distributes fresh produce from an incremental 385-acres of greenhouse and outdoor production.

The company says to expect to continue acquiring other produce assets and operations with the support of its private investment firm partners, and will review various products and companies across many production methods while expanding its platform. “The Parties expect to support Vanguard with additional capital resources to execute a roll-up strategy of other North American produce brands and assets, and plan to expand product categories and offerings for customers through M&A.”

Healthier alternatives
Charlie Sweat, Chairman of Vanguard and Founder of Sweat Equities commented, “We are thrilled to announce the closing of this transaction, and believe we’re positioned well to capitalize on shifting consumer behavior that demands healthier alternatives to processed foods. We now have an established, proven operating team and expect to attract additional human capital as we expand our platform and execute our strategy.”

Doug Logigian, Co-Managing Partner and President of Kennedy Lewis Investment Management commented, “We are pleased to announce our participation with the closing of this transaction and see tremendous opportunity for Vanguard to deliver value for stakeholders as it expands its platform through new product development and IP innovation. We look forward to partnering with Charlie and Village Farms and to supporting Vanguard as it executes its go-forward growth strategies.”

Michael A. DeGiglio, Chief Executive Officer of Village Farms and Interim Chief Executive Officer of Vanguard Food LP commented, “Today’s announcement reflects the beginning of a new era for the legacy produce business of Village Farms, and we’re excited to begin building our shared vision for the future. This partnership makes us stronger, provides more resources to drive innovation and value for customers, and will serve as a catalyst for future growth and expansion.”

The investors
Kennedy Lewis is a credit focused alternative asset manager with over $28 billion under management across private funds. Sweat Equities is a private equity firm focused on investments in the health and wellness area with an emphasis on consumer goods in the food and beverage space. The company is made up of seven funds – a primary SE Fund LP with seven portfolio companies and six SPVs (Special Purpose Vehicles) totaling approximately $100 million of invested capital . Sweat Equities Fund II targets $400 million of capital focused on larger, mid-market companies versus the more emerging company markets in its first Funds. This initial Fund II investment represents the first step in a fast and large M&A strategy to build a fresh foods platform bringing healthy, fresh foods to the market at scale.

For more information:
Village Farms International Inc.
Tel.: +1 (407) 936-1190
villagefarms.com