Leamington, Ont. mushroom producer Highline acquired by Fyffes for $145M
by Canadian Manufacturing.com Staff
Highline Mushrooms was founded in 1961 and is the largest mushroom grower in Canada and the world's largest grower of organic mushrooms
LEAMINGTON, Ont—Mucshroom producer and processor Highline Produce Ltd. has been acquired for $145 million by Dublin, Ireland-based fresh produce company Fyffes plc.
Highline is a fully integrated mushroom business with facilities in Leamington, Ont., Kingsville, Ont. and Wellington, Ont., and Montreal.
Highline’s management team, led by CEO Glenn Martin, will continue to run the business. All of Highline’s five Canadian locations will remain in operation with business as usual for Highline’s 1150 employees.
“Highline is a very fine business with a strong position in an important product category,” said Fyffes Chairman David McCann. “This transaction fits perfectly with Fyffes strategic objective of adding an additional product to its existing three through the acquisition of an established, successful, integrated operator in a category with significant scale.”
“We already operate some of the most state-of-the-art mushroom facilities in North America, and this arrangement will give us access to a global market leader in fresh produce,” said Highline CEO Glenn martin. “Our values are strongly aligned, and we look forward to working with Fyffes management as we continue to grow our business together into the future”.
Highline Mushrooms was founded in 1961 and has grown to become the largest mushroom grower in Canada and the world’s largest grower of organic mushrooms. The company’s cropping techniques have enabled it to grow mini bella and portabella mushrooms without using the pesticides or fungicides regularly required in the cultivation of mushrooms.
Fyffes has been in the fresh produce business for over 125 years. It is a producer, shipper and marketer of bananas, melons and pineapples with operations in Europe, the United States, Central and South America.
