Thai Union abandons acquisition of Lion Capital's Bumble Bee

Combining the companies would have brought together the second and third-largest players in a US shelf-stable tuna market that is dominated by just three major brands. They are also the top two domestic sellers of other shelf-stable seafood products.

Thai Union's brands include Chicken of the Sea, John West, King Oscar, Petit Navire, Parmentier, Mareblu, and Century, while Bumble Bee's portfolio features Brunswick, Sweet Sue, Snow's, Beach Cliff and Wild Selection, as well as Bumble Bee itself.

"Consumers are better off without this deal," Bill Baer, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department's antitrust division, said in a statement. "Our investigation convinced us - and the parties knew or should have known from the get go - that the market is not functioning competitively today, and further consolidation would only make things worse."

Lion Capital bought Bumble Bee from Centre Partners for $980 million in late 2010. Bumble Bee generated sales of approximately $985 million for the year ended September 2014 and EBITDA of around $144 million. It had total assets of $1.1 billion.

Thai Union posted revenue of THB114.3 billion ($3.5 billion) in 2013, up from THB107.7 billion the previous year. Net income fell from THB4.69 billion to THB2.85 billion over the same period. The company sold 41% of its products in the US in 2013 and 30% in Japan. No other market contributes more than 7%.

When the deal was announced last December, Thai Union said it would improve operating efficiencies in raw material sourcing and production, as well as advancing in innovation and new product development, particularly in North American markets.

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• Topics
• Exits
• Regulation
• Southeast Asia
• North America
• Consumer
• Exit
• Trade sale
• regulation
• Consumer
• Southeast Asia
• USA
• Lion Capital