Partnership to invest in global cold chain industry

AGRO Merchants Group and its founders have partnered with funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. to invest in the cold chain industry on a global basis. AGRO will focus on helping high-quality family-operated companies grow to support their customers across broader geographies. AGRO’s initial investments include Mullica Hill Group (Pedricktown, NJ, U.S.), Harthoorn Logistics (Barneveld, Netherlands), Europe Total Logistics (Rotterdam, Netherlands), Gestion Frio Algeciras (Algeciras, Spain), Wiener Kuehlhaus GmbH (Vienna, Austria), Lucca Cold (Vineland, NJ, U.S.), Castlecool (Castleblayney, Ireland), and a new “Greenfield” location in Charleston, SC, U.S.

Neal Rider, CEO of AGRO, stated, “We have been fortunate to find an exceptional capital partner in Oaktree who not only understands the industry but also recognizes the importance of developing an integrated group of exceptional cold chain companies in key global markets. We are already working with some of the world’s most respected family-operated businesses that have expertise in specific customer segments.”

AGRO’s investments to date provide the Company with a solid platform of best-in-class operators for value-added services in the cold chain including import/export, automated packaging, forwarding and transportation across all categories of fresh and frozen foods in multiple countries. Though still in the
formative stages, it is the Company’s intention to continue to broaden its investments with an emphasis on key strategic global trade locations.

The Company now operates 170,000 square meters and 195,000 pallet positions of cold storage and distribution space across nine locations within Europe and the US. AGRO plans to aggressively continue the rapid expansion of its cold chain network and will announce several follow-on investments and “greenfield” locations in the coming months.

Zach Serebrenik, Senior Vice President of Oaktree, said, “We are excited to invest with AGRO Merchants Group as they become the leader in the global cold chain industry. We looked at numerous investment opportunities in the sector and decided to back this management team due to their unparalleled experience and expertise in all facets of the industry. We are excited about AGRO’s innovative end-to-end solutions and are eager to continue investing in the build out of the Company’s global footprint and service offering, utilizing a disciplined and strategic approach to understanding global trade flows.”

AGRO’s industry-leading operational skills, coupled with the strong capital backing of Oaktree, provides a unique opportunity for family-owned businesses to continue to grow and support customers’ increasing needs with capital to retrofit existing facilities or add new facilities and technologies. Two of the Company’s initial founding equity partners are confident in the new partnership. “We are extremely excited to be part of AGRO’s growth strategy,” said Fred Sorbello of the Mullica Hill Group. “The knowledge of each specialized company, coupled with the extended reach of the overall AGRO platform, will bring new opportunities which benefit our customers,” said Jan Harthoorn of Harthoorn Logistics.

For additional information:
Steve Denke
TopRight Partners
Tel: +1-404-631-6929
Email: sdenker@toprightpartners.com
www.oaktreecapital.com

In Europe:
Bart van de Glind
Beneden Boven
Tel: +31 (0) 342 411 311
Email: bart@benedenboven.nl