Denver-based Flagship Food Group announced today (23 August) that one of its subsidiaries has acquired certain assets of Glutenfreeda Foods, including its brand portfolio and its USDA manufacturing facility near Seattle.
The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
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The deal adds a second USDA production facility for Flagship and bolsters the distribution of its brands in the retail channel.
Glutenfreeda, based in Burlington, Washington State, was founded in 2006 on the premise that there was significant consumer demand for food that was gluten-free, but that also tasted good. The brand is known for its granola, oatmeal, burritos, sandwich wraps, tortillas, and flatbreads. Today, its products are found in retailers across North America, including Whole Foods, Sprouts, Loblaws and Kroger.
The company also has an active direct-to-consumer business through its partnership with Amazon Prime.
Flagship said the deal will increase its brand distribution in “thousands of new retail outlets, including traditional, natural, and speciality food retailers in both the US and Canada” and provide it with manufacturing capabilities in the Pacific Northwest.
Key members of Glutenfreeda management, including founder and CEO Yvonne Gifford, will join the Flagship team.
Rob Holland, Flagship CEO, said: “Over the past decade, Yvonne and her team have developed a tremendous portfolio of gluten-free and ‘better for you’ products that represent what consumers today want in their food products.
“Their brand mission is similar in many ways to the commitment we’ve made with our Lilly B’s brand and other products in our portfolio, and we see tremendous opportunity to combine forces to better serve our customers.
“Through our partnership, we hope to vastly expand the distribution of both brand portfolios while staying true to what makes them important to our consumers.”
Glutenfreeda’s Gifford said: “It’s been an amazing journey building and running this company. We have great products and great customers. What we needed was a great business partner. Flagship is the perfect fit for our business, our team, and our production facility.”
Flagship will take over operations in Glutenfreeda’s 25,000 sq ft Burlington facility and has agreed to hire nearly all of the employees of the company.
Flagship serves the retail, club store, and foodservice channels across a broad array of product lines. Its brands include TJ Farms, Lilly B’s, 505 Southwestern, Chris & Pitts, and Su Ming.
