South African fresh produce supplier Capespan is under new ownership after local backer Zeder Investments sold its controlling stake in the business.

The 93% stake was purchased by special purpose acquisition vehicle 3 Sisters, which is backed by local agriculture fund Agrarius Agri Value Chain RF Proprietary.

Agrarius is administered and driven by 27four Investment Managers, a diversified financial services group.

In a statement to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Stellenbosch-based Zeder said the deal - for a consideration of R550m ($29.1m) - is consistent with its strategic review and “pursuant to the evaluation of approaches received by Zeder on various portfolio assets".

Cape Town-headquartered Capespan, which can trace its history back more than 70 years, boasts an annual turnover in excess of R3bn and has operations in 11 countries.

It produces, distributes and markets fruit globally.

Zeder said in a statement to local media: “3 Sisters see in Capespan a successful and sustainable business, with strong leadership, good management, dedicated and committed employees, value-enhancing brands and healthy customer and supplier relationships.”

It added: “The purchaser’s vision for Capespan is firstly that Capespan continues to conduct and grow its business on the same standards, with the same teams and employees and with no disruption to any of its customers or service levels.”

Zeder suggested the purchaser is “well-positioned to assist Capespan to explore growth opportunities and expand its farming operations and marketing footprint globally”.

The sale of the fruit business by Zeder, which has owned it for more than a decade, does not include Capespan’s pome farming unit, consisting of three farms and a packhouse.