News

Peacock goes to Greencore

5 Jan 2017

Private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners has sold its interest in Peacock Foods, a food manufacturer and provider of packaging and supply chain management solutions, to Greencore.

Private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners has sold its interest in Peacock Foods to Greencore. Peacock is a food manufacturer and provider of packaging and supply chain management solutions to many of the top consumer food companies in the United States. Customers include Tyson Foods, KraftHeinz and Dole. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Charlesbank acquired Peacock in 2010. Headquartered in Geneva, IL, the company operates seven manufacturing facilities. In 2015, Peacock acquired L&L Foods, a provider of high-volume, single-serve/portion-control packages of food products. The acquisition provided access into rapidly growing end-markets (prepared salad kits and away-from-home products), diversified Peacock's customer base and expanded its geographic footprint. In conjunction with L&L, Peacock added a new West Coast facility to support growth of the business and expand its presence for other customers. As the food industry increasingly turns toward outsourced manufacturing, Charlesbank says that Peacock maintains strong market positions in fast-growing categories such as frozen breakfast sandwiches, kids' snack kits and salad kits.

In addition to the L&L acquisition, during Charlesbank's ownership the company saw a period of strong organic growth and launched significant lean manufacturing and human capital development initiatives. Additionally, Charlesbank recruited Tom Sampson, a food industry veteran with a long, successful career at Kraft Foods, to become the CEO of Peacock in 2013.

"We are gratified to have had the opportunity to partner with Tom Sampson and his exceptional team to build on Peacock's industry-leading position and well-deserved record of success,” said Ryan Carroll, a managing director at Charlesbank. “This has been a rewarding investment for our investors and Charlesbank, and we wish Peacock and Greencore well as they continue to execute on their promising growth strategy."

"We have enjoyed a terrific partnership with Charlesbank and appreciate their valuable support and insight over the past several years," saidSampson. "Together we have strengthened customer relationships, won important new business, significantly improved our operations and expanded our capabilities -- while maintaining our reputation for outstanding quality, food safety and service. Greencore shares our commitment to the US convenience food market, and we are excited to join their team. With complementary competencies and enhanced operating capacity, we will improve the experience for our customers and fortify a platform for sustained growth."