Profand Fishing Holding bought Mercadona’s 55,000‑m² Caladero plant (capacity 21,000 t, 600 employees) to expand into salmon, trout, seabream, seabass and sardines; the acquisition adds about €200 million in revenue, pushing Profand’s turnover to roughly US$720 million and enhancing its leading position
October 1, 2019 – Antarctica Advisors LLC, the leading Seafood Industry-focused M&A advisory firm, acted as the exclusive investment banking advisor to Bristol Bay Native Corporation (“BBNC”) in its acquisition of a controlling participation in Blue North Fisheries and Clipper Seafoods, the two leading operators in the freezer longline cod sector in Alaska.
Jason Metrokin, President and CEO of BBNC commented: “The Alaska fisheries are an integral part of our shareholder’s lives and our acquisition of these two leading operators in the Pacific cod sector represented a unique opportunity for our group to enter the strategically important seafood industry. The Seafood M&A Team at Antarctica Advisors provided BBNC management and board of directors with valuable industry expertise and execution capability which was integral to the successful completion of this complex transaction.”
Bristol Bay Native Corporation (BBNC) is pleased to announce the pending acquisition of Blue North Fisheries and Clipper Seafoods, two leading operators in the sustainably-managed freezer longline cod sector of the Bering Sea fishery. Effective September 30th, this acquisition will put BBNC, an Alaska Native corporation with deep cultural ties to fishing, in a position to bring Bering Sea earnings home to Alaska, benefiting its 10,000 shareholders as well as the local economy.
US longline fleets Clipper Seafoods and Blue North merged after receiving Department of Justice approval, creating Blue North Clipper with a substantial share of Pacific cod quota; Alaska’s Bristol Bay Native Corporation will acquire a 75 % stake in October, strengthening Indigenous participation and potentially renegotiating fleet management agreements
Seafood executives are in an optimistic space right now, with many saying they expect higher revenues, more M&A activity and more investment in infrastructure and new product development in the coming year.
That’s according to results of an exclusive email survey IntraFishconducted with over 300 top global seafood industry executives earlier this year. The survey’s findings were revealed during the IntraFish Leadership Breakfast during Seafood Expo North America in Boston in March.
DOWNLOAD THE FULL SURVEY HERE! (pdf)
The survey respondents represented various sectors of the seafood industry, but largely self-identified as being in the aquaculture, processing, wholesaling and distribution sectors.
With Blackstone raising more than US$22 billion for its latest private‑equity fund, analysts say the firm and other mega‑funds could target seafood deals as financial investors increasingly view the maturing, sustainable sector as a promising but underexplored asset class, though such funds need large targets like American Seafoods Group
Undercurrent News identified nine major seafood M&A moves to watch for 2019, noting a record 127 deals in 2018 and favourable borrowing conditions, with predictions including Cooke’s bid for Honduras’ Seajoy Group, Platinum Equity’s expected purchase of Iberconsa, CapVest’s pursuit of Young’s Seafood, acquisitions by the Dutch Seafood Company and a potential mega‑merger in Chilean salmon farming
Antarctica Advisors’ Birgir Brynjolfsson said U.S. seafood companies should invest in overseas raw‑material resources rather than relying solely on domestic consolidation, citing Aqua Star’s investment in Indian processor Sagar Grandhi and noting that low interest rates and tax cuts make this an opportune time for M&A
Sources told Undercurrent that the upcoming sale of Portobello Capital’s stake in Spanish fishing group Ibercosa (Iberconsa) will attract strong trade and private‑equity interest, with some suggesting a combination with Grupo Nueva Pescanova could be ideal, though Ibercosa’s management reportedly prefers private‑equity backing
Transaction SummaryAntarctica Advisors, the leading Seafood Industry-focused investment banking firm, acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Clear Springs Foods, Inc. in its 100% sale to Riverence Holding LLC. The combined group is the largest producer of trout in the U.S., becoming one of the largest aquaculture companies in the country.
Antarctica’s specialized Seafood Team worked with the Board and Management in finding the best strategy for the Company, advised in the Company’s refinancing prior to the sale, and led a closed competitive sales process geared towards maximizing value for the Company’s employee-owners.