The nation's largest egg producer has reached an agreement to acquire a Wisconsin manufacturer of ready-to-eat breakfast products in a deal worth nearly $260 million.
Cal-Maine Foods said that the $258 million purchase of Echo Lake Foods would expand the company into the "large, growing and highly stable value-added food portion of the egg category." Echo Lake, which dates back to 1941, produces a range of egg products along with waffles, pancakes and toast.
Cal-Maine President and CEO Sherman Miller called the deal "an exciting growth opportunity and important inflection point" for the company.
“The addition of Echo Lake Foods will supplement our other ready-to-eat egg product offerings, including hard-cooked eggs for retail, quick service restaurant and other foodservice needs from our expanded MeadowCreek Foods operation, and ready-to-eat egg products including egg wraps, protein pancakes, crepes and wrap-ups from our joint venture with Crepini Foods LLC," Miller said in the announcement.
The deal has been approved by each company's board of directors and is expected to close by the end of the current fiscal year, pending approval by regulators and other closing conditions.
The agreement was announced alongside Cal-Maine's third-quarter financial results. The company posted $1.4 billion in net sales and net income of $508.5 million amid "strong consumer demand."
