Paine & Partners to acquire Suba Seeds

Date:10-29-2015

Paine & Partners, LLC, a global private equity investment firm focused on investing in food and agribusiness, recently announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire Suba Seeds Company S.p.A., a leading specialty vegetable and legume seed producer. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Headquartered in Longiano, Italy and founded in 1974 by Augusto Suzzi, Suba is a leading producer, packer and distributor of specialty vegetable seeds for professional, semi-professional and hobby garden markets around the world, as well as a contract supplier to a diverse global customer base of seed companies. Suba is the recognized leading producer of coriander and features a portfolio of core crops including varieties of beans, peas, radish, cabbage, alfalfa, carrots, chicory and onion. Suba has a long track record of delivering high-quality, reliable seed to its customers and a reputation of being a valuable partner to its loyal and diverse supply network of over 1,000 growers.  The Company recently completed construction on a state-of-the-art, high-throughput production facility adjacent to its headquarters to meet expanding global demand for its products. 

Paine & Partners' track record in the global seed industry includes its investment through a predecessor fund in Seminis, which was then the world's leading global developer, producer and marketer of vegetable and fruit seeds, as well as its investment through a predecessor fund in Advanta Netherlands Holdings BV, which at the time was the largest independent agronomic seed company in the world.

Marcello Tumedei, Chief Executive Officer of Suba, said, "Suba has built an unmatched reputation for meeting the needs of our customers with our high quality and reliable seed products since our founding more than 40 years ago. As we look toward the continued growth of our Company, we have found an ideal partner in Paine & Partners, who shares our vision and confidence in Suba's long-term growth prospects.  Paine & Partners has a proven track record and unparalleled expertise in agribusiness, and we look forward to benefiting from their experience and their resources as we take Suba to the next level."

"Our acquisition of Suba will provide Paine & Partners the opportunity to leverage our substantial in-house seed investment expertise and operating knowledge across the seed industry to build a global leading specialty vegetable seeds production platform," said Kevin Schwartz, President and a founding Partner at Paine & Partners. "With new production facilities and a strong grower footprint, Suba is well-positioned to continue capturing market share in the growing global market for specialty vegetable seed. We look forward to partnering with the Suba management team and employees to build on Suba's competitive advantages by expanding into new markets, enhancing Suba's portfolio with higher margin products and making strategic acquisitions."

About Suba Seeds

Suba Seeds is a leading producer, packer and distributor of specialty vegetable seeds for the professional, semi-professional, and hobby garden markets around the world, and a contract supplier to a diverse set of global seed companies.  The company is the leading producer of coriander with a strong portfolio of core crops including varieties of beans, peas, radish, cabbage, alfalfa, carrots, chicory, and onion. Founded in 1974 in Italy, Suba today has operations in Italy, France and the United States.

About Paine & Partners

Paine & Partners is a private equity firm that focuses on complex investment opportunities in the fast-growing, dynamic global food and agribusiness sectors.  Paine & Partners' team includes 25 investment, operations and finance professionals focused on investing globally across the food and agribusiness value chain and throughout cycles.  The firm currently invests through its $893 million Paine & Partners Fund IV, which is solely dedicated to agribusiness investing.