Premium Brands Holdings Corporation has entered into a non-binding letter of intent to sell and lease back a food-production plant in Washington state for US$68 million.

Richmond, B.C.-based Premium unveiled the proposed agreement in its third-quarter report without disclosing the property’s exact location in Washington. But Premium said the company completed the expansion and reconfiguration of a meat snack and processed meats facility in Ferndale, Wash.

Premium expects to receive approximately US$60 million in net proceeds from the sale after transaction costs, taxes, and the company’s investment in the REIT.

The proposed deal calls for the transaction to be completed through a newly created REIT in which Premium Brands willhold a 40% stake.

Premium expects to receive approximately US$60 million in net proceeds from the sale after transaction costs, taxes, and the company’s investment in the REIT.

Additionally, Premium entered into a binding agreement to sell a redundant piece of land in an undisclosed location for $26 million, with the sale anticipated to close in early December 2024.

The two proposed deals resulted early in the fourth quarter, after Premium was highly with several properties on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border during the first nine months of the year.

The moves were designed to support Premium’s growing operations and improve efficiency.

During the first three quarters, Premium:

• Started up the expanded and reconfigured Ferndale plant;
• Launched a new 91,000-sf artisan bakery in San Francisco;
• Started up a new cooked protein capacity in Versailles, Ohio
• Reconfigured a 27,000-sf production facility in Richmond, B.C., transitioning it from fresh sandwich production to supporting the Global Gourmet kettle business
• Constructed a new 165,000-sf distribution centre and reconfigured a sandwich-production facility in Columbus, Ohio
• Started up a new 60,000-sf value-added seafood processing facility in Auburn, Maine.

The expansions and upgrades underscore Premium’s commitment to scaling operations and enhancing production efficiencies across key product categories and regions, said the company.

Premium holds diverse specialty food-manufacturing and differentiated food distribution businesses with operations across Canada and the U.S.

Photo: Premium Brands