AdvancePierre Acquires Philly Steak Market Leader

CINCINNATI — AdvancePierre Foods has completed its acquisition of Allied Specialty Foods Inc., a manufacturer of raw and cooked beef and chicken Philly steak products, from Steven Zoll for $60 million in cash, subject to certain post-closing adjustments.

"We are pleased to add Allied's synergistic product platform and unique capabilities to our existing portfolio and network," stated AdvancePierre President and CEO John Simons. "The Philly steak category is primed for growth, and this acquisition strengthens our position, brings us additional products and production capacity, and expands our geographic reach."

Founded in 1965, Allied's customer base is predominantly in the foodservice industry. The company currently operates from a 20,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Vineland, N.J., with two cook lines, three raw slicing lines and one breakaway steak line. In June 2016, Allied began building a new 70,000-square-foot facility with seven raw slicing/breakaway lines and four cook lines, which is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2017.

"The addition of Allied further expands AdvancePierre's market-leading position in the Philly steak platform by providing entry into fully-cooked product offerings," said Dean Hollis, chairman of the AdvancePierre board of directors. "The transaction is a great example of AdvancePierre's strategy of strengthening and growing its core business through disciplined, accretive acquisitions. We continue to evaluate a significant number of highly attractive, synergistic acquisition opportunities on the horizon and believe AdvancePierre is well-positioned and capitalized to pursue future opportunities as they arise."