Country Crisp Foods has purchased Clover Club from Borden and Nalley's Snack Foods from Curtice Burns Foods, making it the largest privately held snack food company in the western United States.
Myron Walker, Country Crisp founder and chairman of the board, said the combined companies will produce revenues of approximately $100 million annually. He would not disclose the terms of the acquisitions. Country Crisp teamed with a Dallas capital partner to purchase the snack businesses.The expanded company will employ more than 600 people, including 100 new jobs to be created in Utah. The jobs will be primarily involved in production, said Dave Walker, vice president of marketing.
Country Crisp's distribution area now covers Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas.
Product names acquired with the purchases include Clover Club Potato Chips, Red Seal Potato Chips, La Famous Tortilla Chips, El Dorado Tortilla Chips, Little Pancho Snack Foods and in Arizona, Laura Scudder snack foods. Country Crisp products include Country Crisp Potato Chips, Mamacita's Tortilla Chips and Idaho Russet Potato Chips.
"It's a great opportunity for us. It makes us the strong regional player. It gives us a lot more opportunity for sales with the Albert-son's and Smith's divisions. We're bigger players, and it gives us a lot more presence in our industry," said Dave Walker.
Nalley's snack division, located in Tacoma, Wash., has closed and the work will be moved to Country Crisp's Kaysville plant. Country Crisp has hired about 110 former Nalley employees, mostly in sales and marketing positions. Production employees at the Tacoma plant were offered jobs in other divisions of Nalley or their jobs were eliminated.