Deals

Behrman in food packaging deal

The New York private equity firm has added to its specialty packaging portfolio with the $172.5m purchase of Peacock Engineering Company.

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New York- and San Francisco-based Behrman Capital has bought outsourced food packaging service provider Peacock Engineering Company for $172.5 million (€133.2 million). The company’s management, led by its president Michael Bilder, also took part in the deal, Behrman said in a statement.

Based in Geneva, Illinois and founded in 1942, Peacock has four facilities in Illinois. The company’s clients include Kraft, Kellogg’s, Sara Lee, Novartis, McNeil, Wrigley, Masterfoods, ConAgra, General Mills, Land O’Lakes, Unilever and Tootsie Roll.

Behrman’s other investments in the specialty packaging industry include Pelican Products, a Torrance, California-based maker of waterproof protective cases and professional flashlights. Behrman bought Pelican from Minneapolis, Minnesota-based Norwest Equity Partners for about $200 million in October of 2004.

Behrman sold WII Components, a St. Cloud, Minnesota-based maker of hardwood and engineered wood doors and components for kitchen and bath cabinets, to Connecticut-based Olympus Partners earlier this month. That deal was worth $295.5 million.

Grant and Darryl Behrman founded the firm in 1992.