JM Smucker’s portfolio re-shaping has continued with the sale of its Canada-based pickle brands to US peer TreeHouse Foods.
The deal, for around $20m, sees TreeHouse gain the Bick’s pickles, Habitant pickled beets, Woodman’s horseradish and McLarens pickled onions brands.
It comes less than a month after Ohio-based JM Smucker, which has a portfolio including spreads, coffee and pet food, announced the sale of its Sahale Snacks business to Second Nature Brands for $34m. And that deal came weeks after the Jif peanut butter and Smucker’s jam maker confirmed a deal to buy US sweet-snacks business Hostess Brands for $5.6bn.
Tim Wayne, general manager for JM Smucker’s away from home businesses in Canada and in international markets, said: “This decision will allow us to enhance focus on growing our position in the coffee, spreads, frozen handheld and pet categories in Canada with leading and emerging brands such as Folgers, Smucker’s, Jif, Uncrustables, Meow Mix and Milk-Bone, and supporting continued leadership in the baking category with our Robin Hood, Five Roses, Carnation and Eagle Brand brands.”
TreeHouse, the largest private-label manufacturer in the US, has also been reshaping its portfolio of late.
Last month, it sold private-label snack-bar assets to John B. Sanfilippo & Son in a deal worth around $63m.
In the last 18 months, TreeHouse has been looking to re-position its business to focus on more profitable product categories.
In February, it said it would consider making acquisitions to add capacity amid an increase in consumer demand.
Speaking about its purchase, TreeHouse CEO Steve Oakland said: “This acquisition of assets is consistent with our strategy and enhances TreeHouse Foods’ depth in our growing pickles category, allowing us to expand into Canada and thus positioning TreeHouse for continued success.
“We have had a co-packing arrangement with Bick’s pickles for many years and we are pleased to integrate this business with our manufacturing network.”
The brands included in the transaction generated net sales of approximately $60m for JM Smucker in the financial year ended 30 April.
Announcing its Sahale disposal last month, JM Smucker said the deal was consistent with a “portfolio and resource optimisation” plan that also saw it offload a group of pet-food brands to another US food manufacturer, Post Holdings, for $1.2bn in February.
