Agribusiness firm selling 28% stake to Black River

AgriNurture Inc. (ANI) said Monday that it was set to sell shares equivalent to 28.11 percent of its outstanding capital stock for $30.45 million.

The shares will be acquired by a subsidiary of Singapore’s Black River Capital Partners Fund (Food) LP, which will also fund ANI’s expansion activities.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), ANI said Black River Capital Partners Food Fund Holdings (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. would acquire 125,486,095 common shares of the Filipino company.

ANI said that under an investment deal executed with Black River, the latter would buy 76,293,595 common shares of ANI through a regular or special block sale via the PSE and 49,192,500 common shares, which would come from the increase in ANI’s authorized capital stock.

Black River will have a 28.11-percent stake in the Filipino agribusiness company, said ANI chairman and president Antonio L. Tiu via text message.

Black River Capital Partners Fund (Food) LP is a fund managed by Black River Asset Management LLC, which is a unit of US-based commodities giant Cargill Inc.

The investment to be infused by Black River would fund ANI’s expansion program.

For 2012, ANI may initially spend about $5 million for a foreign acquisition. This will be followed by additional purchases that are expected to be completed within the year.

ANI is looking for businesses built around vegetables and fruits, which would fit into the agro-industrial company’s farm-to-plate model.

The company sells fresh and frozen vegetables and fruits locally and abroad. It also supplies its own healthy snack bars and fresh juice to stores.

ANI is also considering listing in the stock exchange in Australia by March 2012, depending on market prospects.