Dive Brief:
- Dole sold its fresh vegetable division to private equity firm Arable Capital Partners, which owns packaged salad brand Organicgirl, for $140 million.
- Dole’s fresh vegetables segment oversees the processing and sale of everything from lettuce and cauliflower to broccoli and packaged salads. As part of the deal, Dole is retaining its facilities in Huron, California, and Yuma, Arizona.
- Dole announced in January 2023 that it planned to divest the segment to Fresh Express, a subsidiary of Chiquita Brands International, for about $293 million. But the transaction was terminated a year later amid opposition from the DOJ, which alleged the deal would reduce competition and lead to higher prices.
Dive Insight:
Dole is best known for its bananas, pineapples, and other fresh fruits, which were responsible for more than a third of the company’s $8.5 billion in sales in 2024. But the Dublin-based company also has a meaningful fresh vegetables division that it has been actively looking to divest for more than two years.
When the company first announced its transaction with Fresh Express, Dole stated that a sale would enable it to improve its financial position and focus on the core businesses, specifically fresh fruit. Dole echoed a similar sentiment in its revised transaction with Arable Capital.
“The completion of this sale represents an important strategic milestone for the Group and will enable us to further concentrate our efforts and investments on our core business activities,” Carl McCann, Dole’s executive chairman, said in a statement.
Arable Capital describes itself as an investment firm focused on the food and agribusiness sector. In addition to Organicgirl, the PE firm owns or has investments in Progressive Produce, a packer and distributor of conventional and organic produce, along with vegetable grower Braga Fresh and several fruit operations.
Adding Dole’s fresh segment provides overlap with some of Arable’s existing fresh vegetables business, including lettuce, asparagus and onions. The purchase could allow Arable to benefit from marketing, production and innovation tied to the new business and further enhance its relationship with growers.
Dole’s fresh vegetable business includes three processing plants across the U.S., agricultural operations and employs more than 3,000 people, according to a statement.
