Stremicks Heritage Foods explores sale

Stremicks Heritage Foods is exploring a sale, which would value the family-owned US maker and distributor of dairy products at over $1 billion, including debt, Reuters yesterday reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Stremicks, which has annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation of around $120 million, has hired investment bank Houlihan Lokey Inc to run an auction for the company, the report said.

Founded in 1988 and based in Santa Ana, California, Stremicks produces and supplies dairy and non-dairy products. Its products include milk, soymilk, rice milk, refrigerated soymilk, almond milk, organic milk, half and half products [dairy product with a fat content lower than light cream but higher than whole milk], whipping creams, organic creamers, aseptic creamers, non-dairy creamers, sports nutrition and meal replacement products, and ice creams.

The company also offers juices, nectar, teas, coconut water, coffee creamers, soups, and refrigerated beverages.

It also provides packaging and distribution services for food giant Nestlé for NesQuik flavored milks and coffee-mate creamers. Stremicks subsidiary Kern's Beverages makes fruit nectars.

The company's foodservice operations supply ice cream, novelties, ice cream and soft-serve mixes, coffee creamer, and fluid milk to a variety of customers, such as Arby's, Del Taco, Jack in the Box, and Disneyland.

It has plants in Santa Ana and Riverside, California, Cedar City, Utah.