Food & Beverage Acquisitions in Colorado

Swiss testing, inspection and certification provider SGS has acquired Murray-Brown Laboratories, a Denver-based food, pet food and nutraceutical testing laboratory. The deal expands SGS's microbial and analytical chemistry testing capabilities in North America and strengthens its footprint for nutraceutical testing, including kratom, kava and hemp analysis.

MPearlRock has acquired The Good Crisp Company, a clean-label salty snack brand founded by Matt Parry, to expand its better-for-you salty snacks platform. The Good Crisp's products are sold in over 20,000 retail doors across the U.S., Canada, Australia and the U.K.; financial terms were not disclosed.

Forward Consumer Partners has acquired a 51% ownership stake in the Justin’s brand, creating a standalone Justin’s company that will be 51% owned by Forward and 49% owned by Hormel Foods. The transaction returns founder Justin Gold as a strategic advisor and installs Peter Burns as CEO as the business — known for nut butters and USDA-certified organic chocolate confections — seeks focused resources to accelerate growth.

Spanish food manufacturer Cerealto has made a majority investment in Fresca Foods, a Colorado-based co-manufacturer of natural and organic snacks. Cerealto will hold a controlling stake while Fresca’s U.S. leadership team remains significant shareholders and continues to run day-to-day operations; the partnership establishes a substantive U.S. manufacturing presence to accelerate growth in the natural and organic snacking market.

Next In Natural has acquired Rowdy Mermaid, the Boulder-based maker of organic kombucha and Good Mood Soda, in partnership with strategic investors KarpReilly and Sapient Stews founder Luke Comer. Founders Jamba Dunn and Erin Donnelly will remain in leadership roles while Next In Natural will provide a shared-services platform to support production, supply chain, marketing and future product innovation.

Middle West Spirits has acquired Old Elk Distillery, adding the Fort Collins-based whiskey brand and related assets to its Columbus, Ohio grain-to-glass portfolio. The deal expands Middle West's branded footprint and production capabilities to support national distribution and future growth of Old Elk's award-winning whiskey lineup.

Lakeview Farms, a portfolio company of CapVest Partners, completed the acquisition of noosa Holdings, Inc. from The Campbell's Company on February 24, 2025; the combined businesses will rebrand as Novus Foods in H2 2025. Silver Point Capital’s Direct Lending business led a $500 million term loan facility to finance the acquisition and refinance Lakeview Farms’ existing debt.

Wilding Brands, a Lafayette, Colorado-based family of beverage brands, has acquired Great Divide Brewing Co., adding the heritage Denver brewery and its taprooms to Wilding’s growing portfolio. Wilding will operate Great Divide’s wholesale business and manage future taproom developments while shifting production to its Canworks facility in Denver.

Labor Smart, Inc. (LTNC) has acquired Go Fast Sports and Beverage Company from Illumination Brands in exchange for 400,000,000 LTNC shares. Go Fast will operate as a standalone subsidiary with Samantha Brown remaining as President as LTNC expands its consumer beverage portfolio and global distribution plans.

Lolli & Pops, a portfolio company of TerraMar Capital, has acquired Hammond's Candies, the century-old US confectioner. The deal — funded by a new revolving credit facility from PNC Bank, a term loan from Advantage Capital Management and additional investment from TerraMar — will allow Lolli & Pops to integrate Hammond's artisanal product lines across its stores and online platform to drive growth.

Innovative Food Holdings, Inc. (IVFH) entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of the assets of Golden Organics, LLC for $1.75 million ($1.4M cash and a $350k five-year seller note). Golden Organics, a Denver/Golden, Colorado-based specialty organic food distributor with ~$6.8M trailing-twelve-month revenue and a 22,000 sq. ft. leased warehouse, will expand IVFH's product assortment, sourcing capabilities and customer base across foodservice, manufacturing and retail channels.

Saco Foods, a portfolio company of Fengate Private Equity and Weathervane Investment Corp., has acquired Quinoa Corporation and its brands Ancient Harvest and Pamela's from Encore Consumer Capital. The deal adds leading gluten-free and plant-based brands to Saco's shelf-stable food portfolio to drive distribution expansion and organic growth; terms were not disclosed.

Conagra Brands has acquired Sweetwood Smoke & Co., the maker of FATTY Smoked Meat Sticks; financial terms were not disclosed. Conagra said the purchase supports its strategy to reshape the portfolio for faster growth by adding a premium, better‑for‑you snack brand and expanding its snacking capabilities and distribution.

Platinum Equity has signed and completed an agreement to acquire a majority interest in Danone's Horizon Organic and Wallaby brands, a carve-out intended to operate the brands as a standalone business. The transaction transfers ownership from Danone to Platinum Equity, positioning the organic dairy brands to benefit from Platinum's carve-out and operational expertise and to pursue growth and product innovation.

Bioriginal, a subsidiary of Cooke Inc., has acquired Softgel Co., a Grand Junction, Colorado-based softgel and encapsulation manufacturer. The purchase expands Bioriginal’s vertical manufacturing capabilities and secures in‑house softgel production for human and pet nutrition products; terms were not disclosed.

Grupo Bimbo SAB de CV has acquired Mile Hi Bakery, a Denver-based supplier of buns and English muffins to quick-service restaurants (QSRs). The purchase, previously part of Mile Hi Companies owned by the Taddonio family, strengthens Bimbo's geographic presence in the U.S. QSR market and expands its customer access across the Rocky Mountain region and beyond.

PAI Partners has agreed to acquire Alphia, Inc., a leading U.S. pet food co-manufacturer, from J.H. Whitney Capital Partners. Alphia, headquartered in Denver, operates six manufacturing facilities and provides milling, R&D, warehousing and logistics services; PAI intends to accelerate Alphia's North American growth organically and via acquisitions.

Campbell Soup Company completed the all-cash acquisition of Sovos Brands, Inc. for $23 per share, representing an enterprise value of approximately $2.7 billion. The deal brings premium brands including Rao's, Michael Angelo's and noosa into Campbell's Meals & Beverages division, creates a new Distinctive Brands unit, and is expected to deliver roughly $50 million of run-rate cost synergies and be accretive to adjusted EPS by the second year.

Unilever has agreed to acquire Yasso Holdings, Inc., a U.S. premium frozen Greek yogurt brand, to bolster the premiumisation of its Ice Cream Business Group in North America. The acquisition, announced from Unilever's Englewood Cliffs office, will add Yasso's better‑for‑you frozen dessert portfolio (sold in grocery and club stores nationwide) to Unilever's ice cream brands and is expected to close in Q3 2023 subject to approvals.

Hometown Food Company, a Brynwood Partners-controlled platform, has acquired Birch Benders from Sovos Brands. The deal adds the better-for-you pancake, waffle and baking mixes brand to Hometown Food Company's portfolio to expand its footprint in the breakfast and baking categories; terms were not disclosed.

Koios Beverage Corp. signed a definitive agreement to acquire all issued and outstanding securities of Retox Beverage Corp., a privately held producer of creative soft beverages, sodas and seltzers focused on the bar-mix market. Consideration for the acquisition is 15,000,000 units of Koios (deemed $0.10 per unit, aggregate $1.5 million); the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals.

Monster Beverage Corporation agreed to acquire CANarchy Craft Brewery Collective LLC for $330 million in cash. CANarchy — a collective of craft beer and hard seltzer brands including Cigar City, Oskar Blues, Deep Ellum and others — will operate independently under its existing management and the deal excludes CANarchy's stand-alone restaurants; the transaction was expected to close in Q1 2022 subject to customary approvals.

Dessert Holdings, the North American premium dessert platform, has acquired Steven Charles — A Dessert Company, a gourmet dessert manufacturer based in Aurora, Colorado. The business will remain led by President Rebecca O'Hara and will leverage Dessert Holdings' scale (and backing from Bain Capital Private Equity) to accelerate domestic growth and pursue broader expansion; financial terms were not disclosed.

Armand Agra, a Founders Company backed by the Flocchini family and Founders Group of Food Companies, has acquired Seattle Fish Company. The deal transfers ownership from the Iacino family while retaining management and employees and positions Seattle Fish as part of the Purewater Foods platform to expand specialty protein and seafood distribution in the Rocky Mountain region.

Canopy USA, a U.S. affiliate of Canopy Growth Corporation, has completed the acquisition of Wana (Wana Wellness, The CIMA Group, and Mountain High Products), the leading cannabis edibles brand in North America. The deal expands Canopy's U.S. brand portfolio and strengthens its position in the edibles category while providing additional distribution and DTC capabilities across state-legal and hemp-derived markets.

Charlotte-based private equity firm Falfurrias Capital Partners has acquired Local Hive, a leading U.S. brand of raw and unfiltered honey, as the first investment from its Fund V; terms were not disclosed. Local Hive, headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, produces 23 varietals of raw honey sold through major grocery retailers and e-commerce channels, and CEO Tony Landretti will remain in place with Falfurrias partners joining the board.

Brand Holdings, a Pittsburgh-based holding company backed by Kidd & Company and T-street Capital, acquired Healthy Skoop, a Boulder-based DTC plant-based protein brand, from Seurat (Seurat Investment Group). The deal is the third add-on to Brand Holdings' DTC health & wellness portfolio and will support product and distribution expansion across Brand Holdings' e-commerce brands.

3D Corporate Solutions, a portfolio company backed by Olympus Partners, has acquired All American Pet Proteins (AAPP), a Greeley, Colorado-based manufacturer of fresh and frozen proteins for premium pet food brands. The deal expands 3D's processing capabilities and product offering across beef, lamb, bison and buffalo proteins to better serve North American premium pet food customers.

Stellex Capital Management has acquired Custom Made Meals (CMM), a Denver-based manufacturer of fresh, oven-ready entrees, appetizers and sides, from New Water Capital. CMM, which expanded its retail footprint from ~6,000 to over 15,000 grocery locations under New Water's ownership, will continue growth under Stellex; terms were not disclosed and the deal was facilitated by Baird.

Arctic Glacier acquired AC Ice Company (Brush, Colorado) and completed the earlier acquisition of Gem Ice (The Dalles, Oregon) to expand its packaged ice production and direct-to-store distribution footprint across the Rocky Mountains and Pacific Northwest. The deals broaden Arctic Glacier’s service coverage in Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico and further strengthen its West Coast presence.

Sire Bioscience Inc. (CSE:SIRE) completed the acquisition of Denver-based PlantFuel, Inc. effective March 12, 2021, issuing 65,000,000 common shares as consideration and retaining PlantFuel as a wholly-owned subsidiary. Concurrently, Sire completed a non-brokered private placement raising approximately CAD 3.514 million, with Plant & Co Brands Ltd. and Eat Beyond Global Holdings Inc. participating as strategic investors.

Sovos Brands has completed its acquisition of Birch Benders, a Denver-based producer of better-for-you pancake & waffle mixes, toaster waffles and baking cups. The deal expands Sovos' portfolio into the breakfast and snacking categories and strengthens its presence in natural and specialty retail channels; Sovos is backed by private equity firm Advent International.

Chicago-based HC Private Investments has entered a strategic partnership and taken a majority stake in Epicurean Butter Company, a Colorado-based maker of flavored finishing butters. Founders Janey and John Hubschman remain in senior leadership roles and retain a significant minority stake; HCPI will provide capital to support sales growth and investments in manufacturing capabilities. Terms were not disclosed.

Keystone Natural Holdings (a portfolio company of Keystone Capital) has acquired the WestSoy tofu, seitan and tempeh businesses from The Hain Celestial Group. The deal excludes the WestSoy plant-based beverage business, which Hain Celestial retained; KNH said it will retain all employees at the WestSoy facility in Boulder, Colorado. Senior debt financing for the transaction was provided by Wintrust Bank; terms were not disclosed.

DS Waters of America, Inc. acquired substantially all of the Colorado assets of Deep Rock Water Co., assuming management of Deep Rock's bottled water delivery routes and related services. The acquisition expands DS Waters' delivery footprint in Colorado and enhances its coffee service and water-filtration offerings for Deep Rock customers.