ESM Technologies, LLC has announced the consolidation of its human and pet supplement ingredients business under the Stratum Nutrition brand, as ESM acquired the Stratum Nutrition brand and related assets from Novus Nutrition Brands, LLC (NNB), ESM’s majority member. This transition commenced on April 1, 2017.
ESM Technologies is a US-based supplier of commercialized eggshell and eggshell membrane wellness ingredients. Since 2010, NNB under the Stratum Nutrition brand, and ESM have operated with a shared sales team, as well as warehouse and shipping operations. This consolidation will further streamline business operations to include order processing and other accounting functions.
Micah Osborne will continue to head the organization as the president of Stratum Nutrition, and Chris Haynes will head sales as the director of global sales. The location of Stratum Nutrition’s headquarters will change from St. Charles, Missouri to the Carthage, Missouri offices of ESM.
“Streamlining the organization in this way will give our team stronger momentum moving forward by providing efficient operational and financial systems to support our growth in pet and human nutrition,” said Micah Osborne in a press release.
Stratum Nutrition’s mission is to sustainably provide nutrition ingredient solutions to nutritional product formulators for human and pet health. Stratum Nutrition offers a portfolio of branded, value-added ingredients including NEM brand eggshell membrane for joint health, ESC brand eggshell calcium for bone health, as well as oral-cavity probiotics, BLIS K12 and BLIS M18 for ENT and dental health.
Pet food mergers and acquisitions
Other acquisitions within the pet food industry have gained global attention, including Lansing Trade Group’s acquisition of Interstate Commodities’ grain and feed, which will close in the third quarter of 2017.
In March 2017, KKR, a global investment firm active in the pet market, invested in Gambol Group, a Chinese pet food company. Six months earlier, a Chinese investment firm, Hillsdown Capital Management, acquired Gimborn, a pet treat manufacturer based in Germany.
