A bankruptcy court hearing on the sale was planned for June 18 in Wilmington, Delaware.
Published reports indicated the winning bid for Borden assets was submitted by private equity firm KKR & Co. and investment firm Capitol Peak Partners. The two buyers created a new entity, New Dairy Opco LLC, to submit a bid for nearly all of Borden’s assets. Details were not available.
Borden filed for voluntary reorganization proceedings under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code on Jan. 5, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the District of Delaware (Borden Dairy Company, et al. case no. 20-10010). Read: Borden Dairy initiates Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and Update: Bankruptcy court allows Borden to pay milk suppliers.
KKR had purchased Borden in 1995, subsequently selling off divisions and brands but remaining a primary lender to the company. ACON Investments LLC took a major stake in Borden in 2017. Borden’s majority owner remains Laguna Dairy S. de R.L. De C.V., owned by Mexico’s Grupo Lala.
At one point, there were discussions into the possibility of a merger of Dean Foods and Borden Dairy, while both companies were in bankruptcy proceedings. However, the bankruptcy sale of most of Dean Foods assets was completed on May 1.
In another twist, Capitol Peak Partners was created in 2017 by Gregg Engles, former head of Dean Foods.
Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Borden Dairy operates 12 manufacturing facilities and more than 75 distribution centers in the Midwest, South and Southeast regions of the U.S. Plants are located in: Dothan, Alabama; Decatur, Georgia; Lafayette, Louisiana; Cincinnati and Cleveland, Ohio; Austin, Dallas and Conroe, Texas; Miami and Winter Haven, Florida; London, Kentucky; Hattiesburg, Mississippi; and North Charleston, South Carolina.
