Milling & Baking News - March 23, 2010 - 13

Business

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Viterra expanding food processing presence
with purchase of Dakota Growers Pasta
CALGARY, ALTA. - Viterra Inc.
has agreed to acquire Dakota Growers Pasta Company, Inc., Carrington,
N.D., in a transaction valued at approximately $240 million.
Under the terms of the agreement,
a subsidiary of Viterra will acquire
Dakota Growers outstanding shares
of common stock at a price of $18.28
per share and all outstanding shares
of Series D preferred stock of Dakota
Growers at a price of 10c per share.
Dakota Growers currently has approximately 12 million shares of common stock issued and outstanding
on a fully diluted basis, and approximately 11.3 million shares of Series D
preferred stock issued and outstanding. Viterra said the $240 transaction
price includes equity value and anticipated net cash/debt at closing, subject
to certain adjustments for transaction
costs and other closing adjustments.
The offer, which is expected to be presented to Dakota Growers' shareholders
within 10 days, is subject to the tender
of a simple majority of the outstanding
shares of Dakota Growers' common

stock, calculated on a fully diluted basis.
"We are very pleased to announce
our agreement with Dakota Growers," said Mayo
Schmidt, president and
chief executive officer of
Viterra, a provider of premium ingredients to global
food manufacturers. "The
histories of our companies
are built upon the strength
of our solid relationships
with our farmers and customers. Our offer comes
with numerous benefits
for both organizations and
aligns well with Viterra's
strategic vision to increase investment
in food processing. We believe that by
building upon our deep knowledge of
the North American durum market, we
can create additional value and support the increasing demand for high
quality pasta desired by today's healthminded consumer."
Based in Carrington, Dakota Growers operates one of the largest durum
mills in North America and is the third

Basic American Foods to acquire Hungry
Jack, Idaho Spuds potato products
WALNUT CREEK, CALIF. - Basic
American Foods has reached agreement
to acquire the Hungry Jack brand potato
products and Idaho Spuds branded potatoes business of Orrville, Ohio-based
The J.M. Smucker Co. Financial terms of
the transaction, which does not include
the Hungry Jack pancake mix and syrup
products, were not disclosed.
"We are very excited to welcome the
Hungry Jack and Idaho Spuds potato
product brands into our family at Basic
American Foods," said Loren Kimura,
president and chief executive officer
of Basic American Foods. "We have an

established history of excellence both
with these products and within the potato products category."
Privately-owned
Basic
American
Foods, which has manufactured and copacked Hungry Jack and Idaho Spuds
since 1999, also agreed to a licensing
agreement with J.M. Smucker that will
allow Basic American Foods to expand its retail presence. Basic American
Foods' other brands include Natures
Own Potato Pearls Premium Mashed
Potatoes, Golden Grill Russet Premium
Hash Brown Potatoes, Potato Pearls Excel, Quick-Start Home Style Chili, and

Van's adding new products, reformulating others
PHOENIX - Van's Natural Foods has
added two products to its portfolio while
reformulating another.
Beginning in April, Van's will launch
Van's 8 Whole Grains, a line of waffles featuring a multi-grain flour mix comprised
of whole wheat, oats, barley, brown rice,
dark rye, quinoa, amaranth and millet
flours. The waffles are available in four varieties: Berry, Multigrain, Lite and Maple.
In late April, Van's said it will introduce Van's Lite waffles. The waffles will
12 / March 23, 2010 Milling & Baking News

contain 70 calories per waffle and are 97%
fat free. In addition, the waffles are made
with whole grains and contain 6 grams of
fiber per serving.
Van's said it will begin introducing a
reformulated Van's Organics line in midMay. To be offered in Totally Natural,
Organic Blueberry and Organic Flax, the
Organics line will include a vitamin and
mineral boost comprised of vitamins A, B
and C and zinc.
"We are thrilled to be launching two

largest producer and marketer of dry
pasta products, primarily supplying
the ingredient, food service and private label retail markets. The company
owns an integrated durum mill and
pasta production plant in
Carrington and a pasta
production plant in New
Hope, Minn. In addition
to the Dakota Growers
brand, the company markets product under the
Dreamfields label.
Dakota Growers posted sales and EBITDA
of approximately $275
million and $42 million,
respectively, for the latest 12 months ended
Oct. 31, 2009.
"Viterra has a reputation for quality and performance and we share
similar cultures and values," said Tim
Dodd, president and c.e.o. of Dakota
Growers. "This is an exciting opportunity for both companies, one that I
believe will secure our long-term future and allow us to expand our product and service offerings to improve
the value proposition for Dakota
Growers customers." MBN
Santiago Refried and Seasoned Black Beans.
For J.M. Smucker, the divestiture continues a trend toward focusing on the breakfast category through the Smucker's, Folgers, Dunkin' Donuts, Pillsbury, R.W. Knudsen Family and Martha White brands.
"The Hungry Jack brand has been a
part of family meals for many years and
Hungry Jack pancake mixes and syrups
will continue to be an important part of
our leading role in the breakfast category,"
said Steve Oakland, president of U.S. retail
for Smucker's, Jif and Hungry Jack. "The
divestiture of this potato business allows
us to better align our company's resources while at the same time provides Basic
American Foods with a product line that
is a perfect strategic fit in its portfolio." MBN
new product lines, new packaging and
several nutritional improvements to our
existing products," said Eric Kufel, chief
executive officer. "Our new lineup gives
consumers a wider array of healthy choices to meet their specific nutritional needs."
In addition to the new products, Van's has
introduced a new logo featuring contemporary fonts and design. The company also is
drawing attention to the health benefits of its
products by adding "nutritional call outs"
such as "6g of fiber" and "Made with Whole
Grain" on the front of its packaging. MBN
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Milling & Baking News - March 23, 2010

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