Colgate-Palmolive Company plans to purchase three dry pet food manufacturing plants in the U.S. from Red Collar Pet Foods for $700 million to support the global growth of its Hill’s Pet Nutrition business.
The plants--in Orangeburg, South Carolina; Clinton, Oklahoma; and Washington Court House, Ohio--will be integrated into Hill’s global supply network to produce dry pet food for Hill’s Science Diet and Prescription Diet brands. The purchase agreement includes the transfer of the approximately 350 employees involved in the dry pet food operations.
Hill’s is currently building a new canned pet food manufacturing facility in Tonganoxie, Kansas, scheduled to begin production next year, and in April completed the acquisition of a canned pet food plant in Italy, also to meet demand for its science-led pet nutrition diets.
“Our Hill’s business is growing well, and we continue to invest to expand production capacity, improve our capabilities with initiatives like our new Small Paws Innovation Center, and better engage pet parents, veterinarians and Hill’s retail partners,” said Noel Wallace, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Colgate-Palmolive Company. “This investment will help further strengthen the Hill’s business today and for the long term.”
John Hazlin, president of Hill’s Pet Nutrition, added: “Hill’s is committed to enriching and lengthening the special relationship between people and their pets, and this additional production capability will help us reach more pets with our science-led foods and enable us to raise the level of service we provide to the specialty retailers and veterinary professionals that offer our products. We look forward to welcoming members of the Red Collar team to the Hill’s family.”
The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and other closing conditions. The acquisition is not included in our current guidance and is not expected to have a material impact on diluted earnings per share in 2022.
Red Collar, an Arbor Investments portfolio company, will manage the dry pet food private label business for a transition period and will continue to own and operate its pet treats business and facilities.
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz acted as legal advisor to Colgate-Palmolive and Perella Weinberg Partners acted as financial advisor to Colgate-Palmolive on the transaction. Kirkland & Ellis served as legal advisor to Red Collar Pet Foods and Centerview Partners served as financial advisor to Red Collar Pet Foods on the transaction.
