NIIGATA, JAPAN — Dare Foods Ltd. Is acquiring Mary’s Gone Crackers Inc. from Japanese rice crackers and snacks maker Kameda Seika Co. Ltd. Reno, Nev.-based Mary’s Gone Crackers, founded in 2004, produces a line of certified organic, kosher, gluten-free and non-GMO crackers, sold at grocery and specialty stores in the United States and Canada.
Dare Foods makes a range of cookies and crackers as well as fine bread (melba toast, toasted baguettes and croutons) and candy (gummies, fruit chews and chewy mints) under such brands as Bear Paws, Whippet, Breton, Boulangerie Grissol and RealFruit, among others, that are sold in North America and over 50 countries. The products are produced at five Canadian manufacturing plants (Cambridge, Kitchener and Milton, Ont.; St. Martine, Que.; and Richmond, BC) and three US facilities (Charlotte, NC; Spartanburg, SC; and Tukwila, Wash.).
According to the most recently available financial results provided by Kameda, Mary’s Gone Crackers generated net sales of nearly $36.3 million in fiscal 2023, down 4.5% from about $38 million in fiscal 2022, and posted net losses of $22.2 million in fiscal 2023 and $20.3 million in fiscal 2022. Kameda USA Inc., a Kameda Seika subsidiary, had acquired a majority stake in Mary’s Gone Crackers in March 2013.
“Kameda has positioned the USA as its most important base for overseas expansion and has been working to develop its USA business by making MGC a subsidiary in (2013) with the aim of entering the ‘better-for-you’ food market, a health-conscious market that is characterized by growing support for organic and gluten-free products in the USA,” Kameda said in announcing the MGC transaction on April 30. “MGC has been facing challenging business conditions due to changes in its business environment caused by factors including soaring raw material prices and, in response, MGC has been implementing business reforms such as improving production efficiency and launching new products.
“However, in considering the restructuring of its USA business strategy, Kameda determined that concentrating management resources on the growth of (subsidiary) TH Foods Inc. would create more effective synergies and, therefore, decided to conduct the (MGC) share transfer.”
Back in March, Kameda agreed to buy the remaining 50% interest in snack company TH Foods Inc. from Mitsubishi Corp. for approximately $220 million. Kameda entered the US market in 1989 when it joined with Mitsubishi to become owners of Sesmark Foods Inc. In 1998, Sesmark became Terra Harvest Foods, now known as TH Foods. The Loves Park, Ill.-based company expanded its product offerings in 2018 with the acquisition of Terri Lynn Inc., a direct-source supplier of nuts, dried fruits and confections. TH Foods’ product roster now spans snack mix components, rice snacks and crackers, and premium nuts, dried fruits and confections.
“The Kameda Seika Group will work to further invigorate the rice cracker products in the USA market,” Kameda said, “aiming to become a ‘rice innovation company’ that maximizes the potential of rice and creates new value and new markets around the world, from the perspective of ‘better for you,’ which it has set as its medium- to long-term growth strategy.”
