News & Insights
Cascadia Capital Advises Oxbow Animal Health in Sale to Manna Pro Products
January 4, 2022
Cascadia Capital, an investment bank serving middle-market clients globally, today announced that its client Oxbow Animal Health (“Oxbow”), a small animal wellness brand that manufactures and markets premium whole foods, supplements, treats and supplies for rabbits, guinea pigs, gerbils, hamsters, chinchillas and more, has been acquired by Manna Pro Products, a St. Louis-based manufacturer and marketer of pet care and nutrition products. Cascadia served as the exclusive financial advisor to Oxbow.
“Oxbow is proud to join Manna Pro’s family of premium brands, and we’re confident in our combined ability to meet the needs of pets small and large,” said Deb Buhro, CEO, Oxbow Animal Health. “Manna Pro shares Oxbow’s longstanding commitment to make a meaningful difference in the lives of pets and the people who love them, and we’re delighted to merge our knowledge and passion with theirs in pursuit of this important mission.”
Oxbow was founded in 1980 as a hay manufacturing operation. Guided by five generations of family hay-growing expertise, Oxbow Founder John Miller spent years honing the craft of producing premium hay. Upon discovering a need in the small pet community for proper nutrition and education, he embarked on a journey to revolutionize the way small pets were fed and cared for. Over the past 30+ years, one farmer’s passion has grown into a global commitment to small animal health. Guided by its purpose of ‘Growing the Good’, Oxbow manufactures, packs, and ships products from its state-of-the-art 250,000 square foot SQF-certified, multi-purpose facility in Omaha, Nebraska, to retailers across the globe.
“This is truly a surreal moment for me and my family,” commented Miller. “There are so many memories of decisions and risks and good times and struggles that have got us here. I cannot thank my management team enough for what we have collectively built. Cascadia was an outstanding partner for us in this process. They will always have my highest recommendation.”
“Cascadia has established a meaningful market position in the agribusiness, food manufacturing, and companion animal sectors,” said Bryan Jaffe, Cascadia Capital Managing Director. “Working with Oxbow enabled us to bring to bear our acumen and expertise in all of these realms. We are delighted to extend our companion animal pedigree into the small animal segment and expect the convergence of sector expertise to be a theme in our practice for the foreseeable future. We are grateful to everyone at Oxbow for having been part of their journey.”
“Oxbow is a very unique asset in a segment with considerable tailwinds,” said John Gulvezan, Cascadia Capital Vice President. “Its reputation for innovation, quality, and effective supply chain management resulted in a very robust process. The company was rewarded for its years of dedication to becoming a standard bearer in the category.”
The sale of Oxbow represents another successful transaction in agribusiness and companion animal sector for Cascadia Capital and a continued demonstration of our experience in the consumables category.
For more information about this transaction, please contact the Cascadia Capital deal team:
Bryan Jaffe
Managing Director
bjaffe@cascadiacapital.com
(206) 436-2534
John Gulvezan
Vice President
jgulvezan@cascadiacapital.com
(206) 436-2549
Or other senior members of the Cascadia Food, Beverage & Agribusiness practice:
Michael Butler
Chairman & CEO
mbutler@cascadiacapital.com
(206) 436-2530
Erik Einwalter
Managing Director
eeinwalter@cascadiacapital.com
(206) 436-2538
Scott Porter
Managing Director
sporter@cascadiacapital.com
(206) 436-2528