ASIA – Proterra Investment Partners Asia has completed three new investments in three Asian high-growth food businesses.
These include nutrition and supplements business Zhong Hong, premium soy sauce brand Wuan Chuang and healthy beverage solutions company No Ordinary Drinks (NOD).
“The recent transactions made in Zhong Hong, NOD and Wuan Chuan joint ventures are fully aligned with our strategy of focusing on the fastest-growing sub-sectors within the food sector in Asia,” says Tai Lin, managing partner at Proterra Asia.
“Our sector specialism and on-the-ground networks enable us to seek out and build successful partnerships with exciting businesses with significant growth potential.”
Recent beneficiary Zhong Hong is a branded health and nutritional supplements company based in China.
Zhong Hong was the first company to launch propolis (highly sought-after natural bee by-product) capsules in China.
The company has competitive positioning in several subsectors, including propolis, protein powder and herbal health, under its Zhong Hong, Ke Yi Kang, Fu Yuan and Xian Wan brands.
Proterra Asia acquired a majority stake in Zhong Hong from China Tuhsu, a COFCO group company, which following the transaction, retains a minority stake.
Two months ago, Proterra Asia led a nine-figure Pre-Series A funding round for Shanghai-based healthy beverage solutions company NOD>
NOD’s existing products include all-natural, stevia-sweetened flavored waters and all-natural sparkling juices.
The new capital will be used to ramp up production, fulfill channel expansion and accelerate go-to-market activities for its two new product lines.
Wuan Chuang, the final company in Proterra’s recent investment spree, is Taiwan’s oldest premium soy sauce brand, Wuan Chuang.
As part of this financing, Proterra Asia will gain an equity interest in a Chinese soy sauce JV owned by the Chuang family and Yihai-Kerry Arawana, China’s largest edible oils brand.
This JV was formed in 2015 and is already producing and marketing its premium soy sauce products in China. Over the coming years, its ambition is to scale capacity significantly.
Proterra Asia is the Asian arm of global food and agribusiness private equity fund manager Proterra Investment Partners.
Proterra Asia’s Food Strategy is to capitalize on the emergence of a new generation of consumers looking for safe, high-quality food products with a focus on health, nutrition, convenience, social impact and sustainability.
The private equity firm most recently closed new investments in Chinese yogurt brand Simple Love and “Asia’s first” line of oat milks for baristas.
The firm previously announced a partnership with a leading alternative protein company to build a large-scale plant protein extraction facility in Singapore to meet the growing demand across Asia for the plant-based egg product Just Egg.
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