Sun-Rype now fully private
Focus on growth as firm founded by growers becomes part of the Pattison empire. By Scott Trudeau
S
un-Rype Products Ltd. has completed a deal to become part of the Jim Pattison business empire, which includes ownership in the automotive, media, packaging food sales and distribution, magazine sales and distribution,
entertainment, export and financial industries.
The company’s shareholders approved the sale at a special meeting in September. The deal was reported to be worth about $94 million. With Sun-Rype now a privately owned company under terms of the sale, all Sun-Rype shares were scheduled to be sold for $7.50 to SRF Acquisition Inc., a subsidiary of Great Pacific Industries, which is a majority stakeholder in the Kelowna-based juice and snack maker.
In a statement, Sun-Rype’s board of directors said the decision to go private would result in immediate savings for the company in terms of management time and actual financial costs. Management time will be more efficiently spent in addressing the opportunities and risks than in dealing with the ongoing obligations imposed on a public company.
“I think in many respects, it’s largely business as usual,” said Dave McAnerney, president and chief executive officer for Sun-Rype. “I’ve got a strong team here at Sun-Rype and our executive team has been setting strategies and leading the organization.” McAnerney said the Pattison Group works “at arm’s length” with the
10 British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Winter 2013-14
businesses it owns and supports the company along with its plans for future growth.
“We’re very pleased about the outcome of the vote and that privatization is moving forward because we think there’s certainly a lot of advantages to privatization,” he said. “We’ve got an ownership that’s highly focused on growth and an ownership that takes a very long-term perspective in their businesses and strong capital backing.”
McAnerney said having a focus on achieving growth over a longer time period is a very important as the company moves into the next phase. Sun-Rype was created by the B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association in 1946 as a separate division to produce and sell pure apple juice from orchards. After operating for 50 years, it became a publicly traded company in 1996 following an attempted takeover by the Clearly Canadian Beverage Corporation and Sun-Rype’s failed expansion project to China.
More than 40,000 tons of apples are pressed annually and then shipped across Canada. The juices and snacks continue to be produced from the company’s factory on Ethel Street in Kelowna.
More recently, the company has
grown through acquisitions in the Yakima Valley in Washington State, expanding its processing and packaging capabilities and increasing access to the abundant fruit supply in the Pacific Northwest region. Sun-Rype has become the second-largest apple processor in western North America. McAnerney noted other benefits in Sun-Rype’s association with the Pattison Group include having a strong relationship with retailers and the media properties Pattison owns. “It really allows us to focus on the business and growing,” said McAnerney. “We don’t have the distractions of reporting the results and the competitive disadvantage of having your results published for everyone to see.”
With a focus on growth and an eye towards the future McAnerney said the sale is beneficial for B.C.’s fruit industry. He added that Sun-Rype is investing in a major capital project but couldn’t share any details at this time. “It’s a significant investment,” he said. “It required the support of the board on what I would say is a major capital initiative that’s going to improve our competitiveness in the market. We’re excited about it and consumers will see some of this innovation coming forward early next year.”
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