Opta Minerals products
Opta Minerals is a vertically integrated provider of products used primarily in the steel, foundry, loose abrasive cleaning, water-jet cutting and municipal water filtration industries.

TORONTO — SunOpta Inc. soon will concentrate solely on its food business now that the Toronto-based company has irrevocably agreed to vote all of its Opta Minerals Inc. shares in favor of a transaction. Opta Minerals has entered into a definitive agreement under which an affiliate of Speyside Equity Fund I LP will acquire substantially all the shares of Opta Minerals.

Rik Jacobs, SunOpta
Rik Jacobs, president and c.e.o. of SunOpta

“The sale of Opta Minerals represents a significant milestone, and we are pleased to be concluding this chapter of our company’s history as it paves the way for SunOpta to truly become a pure-play healthy and organic foods company,” said Rik Jacobs, president and chief executive officer for SunOpta, when the deal was reported Feb. 12. “Following completion of the deal, our entire team will be able to focus solely on the growth and strategic priorities of our vertically integrated international foods business, and the sale will further simplify our reporting. In addition to the greater financial flexibility created by our new expanded credit facility, our balance sheet will no longer reflect the debt associated with Opta Minerals.”

SunOpta focuses on organic, non-bioengineered/non-G.M.O. and specialty foods. The company specializes in the sourcing, processing and packaging of such food products.

Opta Minerals is a vertically integrated provider of products used primarily in the steel, foundry, loose abrasive cleaning, water-jet cutting and municipal water filtration industries. Opta Minerals’ board of directors has recommended Opta Minerals’ shareholders approve the transaction.

SunOpta expects to receive aggregate proceeds of about C$6.2 million ($4.5 million) of which C$4.2 million is cash. The remaining C$2 million will be in the form of a subordinated promissory note of Opta Minerals bearing interest at 2%, which will mature 30 months following the closing of the transaction that is expected to happen in early April. SunOpta, as a result of the pending sale, expects to recognize a non-cash impairment charge in the range of $15 million to $17 million in the fourth quarter of 2015.