ROCKLAND, Maine — One of the midcoast’s largest manufacturing plants is expected to be sold by next June.
International Flavors and Fragrances announced in a news release that it has reached an agreement to sell its food ingredient businesses to a private market manager. That includes the Rockland plant off Tillson Avenue where carrageenan is produced from seaweed. Carrageenan is used as a thickener and stabilizer in processed foods and personal care products, such as toothpaste.
The manufacturing plant has seen a series of new owners over the past decade. DowDuPont purchased the plant in November 2017 from FMC Corp. IFF purchased it from Dupont in February 2021.
There were 107 employees as of the November 2017 sale.
IFF — which calls itself a global leader in flavors, fragrances, food ingredients, and health and biosciences — said it has entered into an agreement to sell its food ingredients business to funds advised by CVC Capital Partners, a leading global private markets manager.
The estimated value of the transaction is $4.3 billion. IFF will retain an approximately 10% minority equity interest in the business, “permitting continued collaboration and cooperation between IFF and Food Ingredients and allowing IFF and its shareholders to participate in future value creation under its new ownership.”
The plant is the top property taxpayer in Rockland with total taxable property at $23.2 million and paid $383,000 in taxes. The company saw its property taxes drop from $461,000 a year earlier due to a revaluation that shifted costs to residential property owners.
The company has taken advantage of a state tax exemption program (Business Equipment Tax Exemption) and $22.6 million in personal property is exempt. The state reimburses Rockland for slightly more than half of that loss of revenue from the exempt personal property.
“We are delighted to welcome IFF’s Food Ingredients business to CVC’s U.S. portfolio,” said Lorne Somerville, managing partner and co-head of North American private equity at CVC. “The business has built a strong position in an attractive, resilient sector supported by long-term growth trends, including increasing global food consumption and demand for clean-label products. Its global reach and proprietary technical capabilities provide a clear competitive advantage, and we see significant opportunity for continued growth.”
James Christopoulos, partner at CVC, added: “The Food Ingredients management team has done an exceptional job building a business with meaningful scale and technical depth. We look forward to partnering with the team and with IFF as co-shareholders to accelerate the next phase of growth through scale and commercial expansion.”
CVC manages more than $230 billion in assets across the world. Its corporate office is in Luxembourg.
This story appears through a media partnership with Midcoast Villager.