Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S.A.-based grocery store company Atalanta Corporation – the largest privately held food importer in North America – is buying J.A. Kirsch, a U.S. food importer specializing in canned seafood.
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed, but Brown, Gibbons, Lang & Company’s (BGL) Food and Beverage investment banking team served as the exclusive financial advisor to J.A. Kirsch in the transaction, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.-based BGL said.
Under the umbrella of Gellert Global Group, Atalanta imports several specialty foods – from frozen, private-label retail offerings to fresh air cheeses. Meanwhile, Teaneck, New Jersey, U.S.A.-based J.A. Kirsch, founded in 1905, is a national, privately owned leader in importing and wholesale distributing canned seafood and other specialty shelf-stable food products, according to BGL.
Canned tuna, salmon, sardines, and anchovies are just a few of the 100 SKUs J.A. Kirsch offers, and the company also provides several seafood items under its Ruby brand.
The addition of J.A. Kirsch and the Ruby brand to Atalanta’s portfolio will catalyze the ongoing expansion of the latter company’s imported specialty food brand business, the company said.
“The company’s strategic presence throughout the [U.S.] East Coast, particularly the Northeast, makes them an ideal partner to bolster Atalanta’s position in the independent and retail depot segments of the foodservice industry,” BGL said.
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