USA – Strauss Brands LLC, a specialty meatpacker in Franklin has been acquired by a Texas based private equity firm Insight Equity Holdings.
Insight Equity bought a majority share holing in the organics beef producer and has unveiled plans of a new processing plant. The amount of the transaction was not disclosed.
However, while announcing the transaction, the chief executive of the company Randy Strauss said that the Strauss family, which has owned and run Strauss Brands for 82 years, retains “a significant ownership position.” He will continue as CEO and president.
In a statement, Randy Strauss said the investment by Insight Equity will provide the capital needed to develop the new plant.
“Due to the growth of our grass-fed and organic beef offerings, in addition to our core veal and lamb business, we have simply outgrown our current production facility. said Strauss.
“The investment by Insight Equity will provide the capital we need to develop a new state of the art processing facility in Franklin, WI, which has been our home for over 50 years. We are grateful to the leaders of the City of Franklin for their support of this transformative project.
“Our location provides us with access to a stable base of exceptional employees and is ideally located to provide reliable delivery solutions to our customers via our in-house long-haul perishable trucking division,” he added.
Strauss Brands plans to invest US$58 million in developing a 175,000-square-foot plant, Jerry Bussen, chief financial officer of the company said.
Bussen said the company hopes to break ground on the new plant by November and start production there in early 2021.
“The Strauss family’s commitment to humane and ethical agricultural practices has put them at the forefront of emerging product categories, including quality-focused, American raised grass-fed beef,” added Warren Bonham, chief operating officer at Insight Equity.
“Insight Equity is pleased to be partnering with the Strauss family to continue to expand its product and customer markets while simultaneously investing significant capital to grow production capacity and decrease operating costs,” Warren said.
