Blacks Harbour, New Brunswick, Canada-headquartered Cooke Seafood Inc. has announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire Seattle, Washington-based Icicle Seafoods, Inc. from the Paine & Partners private equity firm for an undisclosed price. Completion of the transaction will enhance its presence in both the wild fishery and aquaculture sectors, making the family-owned company a leader in the US salmon farming industry and a major player in the Alaskan salmon fishery.
“The closing of this deal will be an exciting venture for us as it will add a well-respected fishery to our businesses,” said Glenn Cooke, president of Cooke Seafood Inc. “We have tremendous respect for the Alaska fishery and its highly valued brand in the seafood marketplace. Our family and our business are rooted in a small coastal fishing town on the east coast of Canada, and we have become a mainstay to communities in rural and coastal Maine. We look forward to meeting with similar communities in Alaska and supporting them for the long term.”
The purchase will include Icicle’s three business units, which annually harvest and process over 150,000 metric tons of wild salmon, farmed Atlantic salmon, groundfish and crab.
By adding the Atlantic salmon farming operations in the state of Washington to current operations in Maine, Cooke will strengthen its leadership role in the United States aquaculture sector. It will also become the only company in the world that farms salmon while holding a significant market position in wild salmon.
With a global network of cold storage and distribution facilities, Cooke offers a large portfolio of seafood protein from the ocean – both farmed and wild – to a broad base of clients in the international marketplace. Because of Icicle’s diversification across a wide array of species and product forms, Cooke’s sales team will be able to provide customers with year-round access to wild salmon, black cod, pollock, rockfish, crab and farmed salmon in addition to products from the Wanchese Fish Company, which is a major scallop producer based in North Carolina.
“The Icicle team is excited about the opportunity to join the Cooke family of companies and to be able to focus on the expansion of our footprint in Alaska,” said Christopher Ruettgers, chief executive officer of Icicle Seafoods, Inc. “Cooke provides us with a long term owner that is dedicated to the seafood industry. The partnership also means access to capital to further modernize our platform, expanded market access for the products harvested by our fleets, and a broader product offering for our customer base.”
This transaction is consistent with the Cooke family’s focus on vertical integration and diversification in terms of geography, products and markets. Icicle Seafoods, Inc. will provide another vehicle for growth within the capture fishery.
The Cooke family’s strategy has been to achieve growth through acquisitions and organic growth in the seafood sector that is both sustainable and responsibly managed to meet market demand.
With the purchase of Icicle Seafoods, the Cooke group of companies in North America, Chile, Spain and Scotland will produce over 275,000 metric tons of seafood annually and generate $1.8 billion in sales per year. The transaction is anticipated to close in less than 30 days, once all regulatory and legal matters have been completed.
Icicle Seafood has been up for sale for more than a year. Indonesian companies Convergence Holdings and Dominion Catchers were keen to buy it last summer, but the deal fell through.
With roots dating back to 1965 at a cannery in Petersburg, Alaska, Icicle has grown over the years to become one of the most diversified seafood companies in North America, with facilities throughout Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. Operating processing vessels as well as shore-based processing plants and fish farms, the company’s primarily frozen line ranges from salmon and crab to halibut to Pacific cod, sablefish, Alaska Pollock and fish roe. Its products are sold throughout the world into a variety of customer channels including industrial, foodservice, wholesale and retail.
