Global Food and Ingredients (GFI) has entered into agreements related to its recently created subsidiary Big Sky Milling Inc.
GFI said the proceeds from the agreements will be used by the company’s main ingredients division to refinance existing loans and unlock liquidity to invest in further operational growth.
In August 2023, GFI created a new subsidiary named Big Sky as part of a previously announced planned minority investment in its pet food ingredients division with 35 Oak Holdings. Current transactions include plans to raise $11.8 million through equity investment and debt in its pet food division, while 35 Oak will contribute a $500,000 investment, bringing the total investment to $12.3 million.
Under the agreements, GFI will transfer all assets and liabilities related to the pet food ingredients business to Big Sky. As part of the transaction, the company will raise $3.45 million by selling 49.9% of Big Sky’s common shares to 35 Oak.
Once the pet food deal is completed, 35 Oak will also provide a $500,000 loan to GFI’s main ingredients division. The transactions are expected to close by the end of January.
GFI is a Canadian plant-based food and ingredients company, connecting local farms to the global supply chain for peas, beans, lentils, chickpeas and other high-protein specialty crops. GFI’s vision is to be a vertically integrated farm-to-fork plant-based company that provides traceable, locally sourced, healthy and sustainable food and ingredients. GFI is organized into four main business lines: basic ingredients, value ingredients, plant-based pet food ingredients and downstream products. Headquartered in Toronto, GFI buys directly from its extensive network of farmers, processes its products locally at its four wholly-owned processing facilities in Western Canada and ships to 37 countries worldwide.
Excerpted from a press release.
