Best Brands Corp. purchases Telco Food Products

MINNETONKA, Minn. — (Dec. 12, 2006) — Best Brands Corp., a privately held company owned by Value Creation Partners Inc. of Columbus, Ohio, has announced it has purchased Telco Food Products, Inc. of Colton, Calif.   Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

Best Brands, with corporate offices in Minnetonka, Minn. and manufacturing and distribution centers throughout the U.S. and Canada, is a customer-focused manufacturer and distributor of high quality, specialty bakery products to in-store bakeries, retail and wholesale bakeries, and foodservice companies in North America.

Telco manufactures and distributes frozen baked cakes, brownies and muffins to in-store bakeries throughout the U.S.

“The Best Brands vision is to be the ‘baker’s baker,’ the most trusted, innovative and loyal supplier to the baking industry,” said G. Scott Humphrey, president and CEO of Best Brands Corp.  “The Telco business is very complementary to Best Brands in terms of product line, customer base, and geographic presence.”

The purchase of Telco will allow Best Brands to provide a full product and service offering with opportunity for growth with existing and new customers, according to Humphrey. “The acquisition of Telco further enhances the Best Brands Corp. geographic reach as well as its presence in the frozen bakery products market,” Humphrey said.  

The Telco Food Products president, Timothy Telliard, will continue with the company as senior executive managing director of special operations. “The Telco Food Products operations, as well Best Brands overall, are expected to continue a sustained pattern of solid growth within the bakery industry,” said Humphrey.

Established in 1991, Telco is headquartered with state-of-the-art manufacturing operations in Colton, Calif.    Cherry Tree Securities, LLC was the exclusive advisor to Telco Food Products for the purchase by Best Brands.

Best Brands Corp., which was founded in 1971, offers more than 4,500 manufactured and distributed commercial baking products sold under the Best Brands^TM, Multifoods Bakery Products^®, Fantasia®, and Gourmet Baker® labels.

Best Brands was acquired by Value Creation Partners in 2000.  In 2005, Best Brands purchased the Multifoods Foodservice and Bakery Products Division of International Multifoods Corporation from the J.M. Smucker Company.

In addition to its corporate office in Minnetonka, Best Brands U.S. facilities are located in Eagan, Minn.; Dallas, Texas; Bonner Springs, Kan.; Elyria, Ohio; Tampa, Fla.; Sedalia, Mo.; and La Mirada, Calif.   The company’s Canada facilities are located in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Best Brands manufactures a variety of products for the baking industry, including laminated dough products, frozen baked cake products, frozen muffins, brownies, bars and specialty dessert products, dry mixes (such as cakes, brownies and breads), wet products (such as icings, fillings and batters), frozen cookie dough and more.  Best Brands also distributes basic baking ingredients, such as flour, sugar and shortening.

  “Telco further expands the Best Brands manufacturing capacity and adds another premium brand to the Best Brands Corp. portfolio,” Humphrey said.