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Let’s TalkHonor Foods Acquires Sunny Morning Foods in Florida
Honor Foods, based in Pennsylvania, United States, a foodservice distributor and subsidiary of Burris Logistics, acquired Sunny Morning Foods, a foodservice distributor based in Florida, on June 23, 2023. The acquisition will increase Honor Foods’ product line and expand its geographical reach to the Southeast United States.
Transaction Summary
The Facts of the Acquisition
- Target: Sunny Morning Foods is a foodservice distributor operating mainly in the Southeast United States. It provides more than 900 products of various brands and its own-brand eggs, dairy products, cheeses, and butter.
- Acquirer: Honor Foods is a foodservice distributor with more than 3,000 products, including its own brands Sommer Maid Creamery, Colony Lane, and Valley Fresh. Through its own and its parent company’s distribution facilities, Honor Foods serves customers from Maryland and Florida to Oklahoma and Wisconsin.
Our Take on the Acquisition
The acquisition will allow Honor Foods (acquirer) to expand its product portfolio. Through its own brands, Honor Foods markets butter, cheeses, cultured dairy products, french fries, seafood, beef patties, and frozen vegetables. The acquisition includes Sunny Morning’s (target) own brands and allows Honor Foods to sell egg products and a wider offering of dairy products, such as cheeses and creams.
Sunny Morning’s main operations and customers are in Florida. Honor Foods, through its parent company, Burris Logistics, also has three distribution centers in the state. It’s doubtful the acquisition took place for the additional distribution centers in the state. However, because Sunny Morning has been in business since 1910, its customer list would be an asset. The 3,000 products sold by Honor Foods can be marketed to customers of Sunny Morning.
The Transaction
| Date: | June 23, 2023 |
| Price: | Undisclosed |
| Purpose: | To expand the product portfolio. |
| Acquirer’s Statement: | Walt Tullis, president of Honor Foods – “This acquisition is another step towards fulfilling our longstanding strategy – to build upon our dairy expertise as a way to provide competitive differentiation within the foodservice redistribution channel while satisfying customers’ product needs. Sunny Morning Foods has an extensive offer of dairy products, including butter, cheese, and creams, under their own proprietary brands in addition to many highly regarded national brands. Further, Sunny Morning has established a reputation for superior customer service throughout the Florida marketplace, and we are excited to introduce the broader Honor Foods portfolio to their customers.” Donnie Burris, CEO and president of Burris Logistics, the parent company of Honor Foods – “We are proud to welcome Sunny Morning Foods into the Burris Logistics family. As Honor Foods expands into the Southeast, it is important that we acquire a brand with similar quality, customer service, and distribution capability as Honor Foods has in the Mid-Atlantic. Beginning in 1988, Dale Volker and Ken Carlson [owners of the target company] have built and operated a wonderful family business. This makes Sunny Morning a tremendous cultural fit, and we look forward to carrying on the Sunny Morning heritage for many years to come.” |
Target/Seller: Sunny Morning Foods
Company Information
| Target: | Sunny Morning Foods |
| Website: | sunnymorning.com |
| Founded: | 1910 |
| Industry: | Food and Beverage Distributor |
| Type: | Private, family owned |
| Employees: | 25 (Unconfirmed Source: ZoomInfo) |
| Locations: | Venice, California, United States |
Product Information
| Services: | Distribution – Sourcing food items from producers and selling to businesses and retail customers. Logistics – Transportation of food items to retail and wholesale buyers. Warehousing – Storage and handling of food items. Packing to meet order size. |
| Products: | More than 900 SKUs, including own brands in the eggs, dairy, butter, and cheese categories Butter – Butter, portion butter, and margarine Cheese – American cheese, domestic naturals, shredded naturals, blue cheese, soft-ripened cheese, Italian classics, specialty cheese, goat’s cheese, feta cheese, fresh mozzarella, and Swiss cheese Dairy – Cream, milk, cream cheese, cultured dairy, ricotta, and whipped cream Eggs – Eggs, liquid eggs, frozen eggs, and powdered eggs Ingredients – Topping, mayonnaise, oil, vinegar, condensed milk, and powders |
| Market Reach: | Southeast United States Caribbean Islands Central America South America |
Financial Information
| Revenue: | USD $7.3 million (Unconfirmed Source: ZoomInfo) |
| Revenue per Employee: | USD $292,000 (Estimated based on the number of employees and revenue from ZoomInfo) |
Target/Seller Overview: Sunny Morning Foods
Family owned and operated since 1910, Sunny Morning was founded on principles of reliability, service, and quality. The company has grown to be a premier distributor of dairy products in the Southeast United States, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean Islands. Sunny Morning stocks more than 900 items, including its own brands of butter, cheese, dairy, and eggs. It has a diverse client base with business customers in foodservice and retail distributors, manufacturers, exporters, cruise lines, airlines, and institutions.
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Explore Your Options NowBuyer/Acquirer: Honor Foods
Company Information
| Buyer: | Honor Foods |
| Website: | honorfoods.com |
| Parent Company: | Burris Logistics |
| Founded: | 1949 |
| Industry: | Food and Beverage Distributor |
| Type: | Subsidiary of Burris Logistics, a private company |
| Employees: | 86 (Self-published on LinkedIn) |
| Locations: | Head Office and Distribution Center #1: 5505 Tacony Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States Corporate Headquarters: 501 Southeast 5th Street, Milford, Delaware, United States Delaware Distribution Center #2: 1000 Centerpoint Blvd, New Castle, Delaware, United States Florida Distribution Center #3: 2505 Knights Station Rd, Lakeland, Florida, United States Distribution Center #4: 4501 Dignan St, Jacksonville, Florida, United States Distribution Center #5: 1110 County Line Rd, Lakeland, Florida, United States Georgia Distribution Center #6: 350 King Mill Road, McDonough, Georgia, United States Maryland Distribution Center #7: 3946 Federalsburg Highway, Federalsburg, Maryland, United States Oklahoma Distribution Center #8: 14343 North Kelly Avenue, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States Wisconsin Distribution Center #9: 900 Gale St, Waukesha, Wisconsin, United States |
Product Information
| Services: | Supplies more than 3,000 SKUs Distribution – Sourcing food items from producers and selling to businesses and retail customers. Logistics – Transportation of food items to retail and wholesale buyers. Warehousing – Storage and handling of food items. Packing to meet order size. |
| Products: | Butter – Butter, portion butter, and margarine Cheese – Assorted, locally made cheeses French Fries – Long, thin pieces of potato deep fried in oil or fat Beef Patties – Flatten servings of ground beef Frozen Vegetables – Freshly frozen vegetables stored for consumption off-season |
| Market Reach: | United States |
Financial Information
| Revenue: | $35 million (Unconfirmed Source: ZoomInfo) |
| Revenue per Employee: | USD $406,976 (Estimated based on the self-reported number of employees and revenue from ZoomInfo) |
Buyer/Acquirer Overview: Honor Foods
Honor Foods, a Burris Logistics’ subsidiary, was founded in 1949 as a redistributor of center-of-the-plate foods. Since then, the company has grown into the Mid-Atlantic region’s premier provider of frozen, refrigerated, dry, and dairy products. It represents more than 300 brand-name food suppliers and carries more than 3,000 in-stock items. Its own brands – Colony Lane, Sommer Maid Creamery, and Valley Fresh – have a well-earned reputation for top quality and value at competitive prices.
In 2007, Honor Foods was acquired by Burris Logistics. Together, the enterprise creates a complete supply chain solution offering Honor Foods, Burris Logistics, and Trinity Logistics. Trinity Logistics offers freight brokerage and specializes in the food and beverage cold chain industry, and Burris Logistics offers warehouses nationwide with various storage and e-commerce solutions. Altogether, Burris Logistics operates nine distribution centers in the United States.
Previous Acquisitions
Sommer Maid Creamery (2022) – A family-owned, foodservice redistributor of dairy products, based in Pennsylvania, which serves institutional and retail clients on the east coast. (No other publicly available information.)
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