London-based private equity firm Investindustrial has acquired TreeHouse Foods, Inc., the largest US manufacturer of private-label products, in a $2.9 billion deal that takes the company private.
The all-cash deal merges TreeHouse with Industrial F&B Investments III, Inc., a subsidiary of Investindustrial. Oak Brook, Ill.-based TreeHouse will continue as the surviving corporation, TreeHouse said.
The purchase follows a bumpy decade for TreeHouse, which has seen its stock value crater from an all-time high of $104.35 in 2016 to $24.43 prior to the acquisition.
The news has industry experts speculating on whether the acquisition is the beginning of a renewed wave of M&A activity in CPG.
TreeHouse Foods’ struggles
The food and beverage store brand giant works with the largest grocers in the country, including Walmart, Amazon, Kroger and Trader Joe’s, but over the last decade, TreeHouse has been in belt-tightening mode.
In 2023, TreeHouse sold its Lakeville, Minn., manufacturing facility and snack bar business to John B Sanfilippo & Son for $63 million, and announced plans to restructure the company to focus on high-growth, high-margin categories.
Following a string of negative quarters in 2022, TreeHouse sold a majority stake of its meal-prep business to Investindustrial for $950 million. In 2021, TreeHouse sold its ready-to-eat cereals business to Post Holdings in 2021 for $85 million.
TreeHouse has continued the reorganization, closing its Chicago pickle plant in 2025 and laying off 80 employees, according to Powder & Bulk magazine.
Investindustrial’s turn in the Treehouse
Grocery consultant Phil Lempert, known as the “Supermarket Guru,” said Investindustrial is “going to have to really trim expenses in order to be the [private label] leader they should be.”
Conagra sold its private-label business to TreeHouse in 2016 for $2.7 billion, “and they’ve been struggling ever since,” according to Lempert.
“While private brands have soared, TreeHouse really hasn’t done as well as they should have,” Lempert said. “It’s probably due to the overpaying for Conagra’s assets.”
Investindustrial faces a big challenge in the increasingly competitive private-label industry, according to Lempert.
“Since the pandemic there have been a lot of smaller private-label companies that have focused on working for more innovative, healthier food start-ups that are more nimble and have lower overhead,” Lempert said. “That’s really where there has been tremendous growth. The old model that Tree House is based on is high volume for major brands and retailers. I’m not sure that works anymore.”
More M&A to come?
Industry analysts speculate that the deal could spark more mergers and acquisitions activity in the food and beverage sector.
Global strategy and supply-chain consultant Brittain Ladd called the acquisition “a strategically sensible buyout because it delivers immediate value to shareholders at a premium, and it gives Investindustrial a foothold in a resilient consumer category.”
“I anticipate that InvestIndustrial will align TreeHouse’s strategy for long-term operational improvement,” he added.
Investors, manufacturers and supply-chain stakeholders in the food and beverage industry are watching closely, according to Ladd.
“The move reflects broader consolidation trends in consumer packaged goods and private-label manufacturing,” he said. “If you’re watching where private equity is deploying capital in food and retail supply chains, this is a notable example. I believe this acquisition will generate similar M&A in the industry.”
The comment echoes a 2025 William Blair report that speculates the challenging economy could be a “silver lining” for M&A activity.
William Blair Partner and Research Analyst Jon Andersen said in the report that valuations of CPG staple companies “are much more attractive” now than a year ago.
“There has been more M&A in the industry as evidenced by recent deals including Investindustrial’s planned purchase of TreeHouse Foods, Kimberly-Clark’s acquisition of Kenvue, Keurig Dr. Pepper’s transaction for JDE Peets, PepsiCo’s purchase of Poppi and Siete Foods and Hershey’s acquisition of Lesser Evil,” he wrote.