Darwin merges Plum Baby with Plum Organics

The sale was made in exchange for shares in Plum Organics, an organic children's nutrition company based in the US. Darwin didn't realise any value from its investment at this point.

The merged group will be based in San Francisco and retail more than 150 products internationally, with sales in excess of $120m. The merger marks the beginning of an international expansion plan that will see the trademark established in geographies including Asia and South America, the GP told unquote".

The freshly-merged company is private equity-owned, with Darwin and US investors Catterton Partners and Catamount Ventures as shareholders. 

The GP had been in contact with Plum Organics since the investment in Plum Baby as both companies had the same corporate values and a shared objective of producing organic and nutritious food for children. 

Previous funding
Darwin acquired Plum Baby for £10m through its debut fund in 2010. The deal saw a number of VCTs exit the firm, including funds managed by Beringea and Foresight. Noble Fund Managers Private Equity and Octopus Ventures backed the firm in 2008 as part of a £2m financing round.

Company
Founded in 2004 and based in Taplow, Plum Baby is a producer of organic baby and toddler food.

The wet food is sold in specially-developed resealable pouches, which eliminate the need for preservatives and processing. All food is 100% organic and contains no added sugar, additives or genetically-modified products.

People
Jonathan Kaye is a partner at Darwin and worked on the deal.

Advisers
Equity - Spayne Lindsay & Co. (M&A); LEK Consulting (Commercial due diligence); BDO (Financial due diligence); Kirkland & Ellis (Legal); PwC (Tax).

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