Justin "Duke" Havlick, Duke's and BIGS founder and chief executive officer, said, "What started 13 years ago as a simple passion for fire roasting seeds and slow smoking meats, has grown . 5. The appetite for deals in the meat snacking industry in particular has been ravenous. BIGS produces a line of premium seed snacks, including jumbo in-shell sunflower seeds, sunflower seed kernels and roasted pumpkin seeds. VMG Partners, a PE firm based in San Francisco and Los Angeles that invests in natural and organic food companies, took a stake in Hinesburg, Vt.-based VSC Holdings Inc. VSC makes various smoked and cured meats under the Vermont Smoke and Cure brand. Justin Duke Havlick. Founded by Justin "Duke" Havlick, Thanasi. Thanasi Foods is a manufacturer and distributor of packaged snack foods. BIGS partners with some of America's most-loved brands to bring big, bold flavor to seeds. 111 Pine Street Suite 1825 1. 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Conagra Brands, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, is one of North America's leading branded food companies. Financial terms were not disclosed. Houlihan Lokey served as financial advisor and Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP served as legal counsel to Thanasi Foods LLC and BIGS LLC. Encore provided Thanasi with growth capital and partial liquidity for existing shareholders. Your information will be erased and your published posts will be reassigned to the site's admin account. BIGS partners with some of Americas most-loved brands to bring big, bold flavor to seeds. - Justin Duke Havlick. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. An ideal partnership that helped solidify our strategic sale to Conagra!, Thanasi Foods Founder & CEO, Justin Duke Havlick, 111 Pine Street Suite 1825 San Francisco, CA 94111 Justin 'Duke' Havlick, Duke's and BIGS founder and CEO, said: "What started 13 years ago as a simple passion for fire roasting seeds and slow smoking meats, has grown into two terrific brands that . CHICAGO, March 16, 2017 (PRNewswire) Today Conagra Brands, Inc. announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire protein-based snacking businesses Thanasi Foods LLC (Thanasi), maker of Duke's meat snacks, and BIGS LLC (BIGS), maker of BIGS seeds. "This is another exciting step in our ongoing efforts to reshape our portfolio to be more premium and modern," said Sean Connolly, president and chief executive officer of Conagra Brands. This Batch was Freshly Crafted with Cilantro & Lime Juice: Our travels throughout Latin America inspired us to make these tangy smoked shorty sausages. help you have the best experience while on the site. The competition in the snack set will see some sibling rivalry with todays announcement that Conagra Brands, producer of DAVID seeds and Slim Jim, has entered into an agreement to acquire Thanasi Foods, maker of BIGS seeds and Dukes meat snacks. Something to keep in mind while pairing is the intensity of flavors. This balanced pairing leaves an unforgettable aftertaste of dark chocolate, spice and overall deliciousness that keeps you begging for morethat is, if you can handle it! But theres much that Thanasi can bring to Conagra as well. Their brands include Duke's Smoked Shorty Sausages and Bigs Sunflower Seeds. Sign up and we will deliver our newsletter to your inbox highlighting our latest and greatest stories. These forward-looking statements include, among others, statements regarding expected synergies and benefits of a potential combination of Conagra Brands and Thanasi and BIGS, expectations about future business plans, prospective performance and opportunities, regulatory approvals and the expected timing of the completion of the transaction. Following the completion of the transaction, the Dukes and BIGS brands will continue operating out of Boulder, Colorado. 2023 TheStreet, Inc. All rights reserved. Justin started making his own jerky on his backyard smoker. Ideally, you want to start by tasting the jerky first, smelling the aroma of the beer and then taking a sip, letting the flavors settle on your tongue. 7 g protein with 2 g of total sugar per serving. His inspiration was to bring unique flavors and a specialty, craft focus to two categories (seeds and smoked meat snacks) that were, at the time, somewhat less differentiated. Interestingly, the spiciness of the jerky is toned down by the pale ale, and finishes with a unique taste of molasses and brown sugarnicely setting your palateup for round two. Conagra's iconic brands, such as Marie Callender's, Reddi-wip, Hunt's, Healthy Choice, Slim Jim and Orville Redenbacher's, as well as emerging brands, including Alexia, Blake's and Frontera, offer choices for every occasion. Encore Consumer Capital, a private equity firm that invests exclusively in leading consumer products companies, has completed the sale of Thanasi Foods, marketer of the Duke' s and BIGS snack brands, to Conagra Brands, one of North America' s leading branded food companies. Below are the favorite pairings of Dukes Smoked Meats and Left Hand Brewing Company. Gluten-free Nutrition . We are published by the Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade group dedicated to promoting and protecting Americas small and independent craft brewers. document.getElementById("eeb-49608-174680").innerHTML = eval(decodeURIComponent("%27%69%6e%66%6f%40%65%6e%63%6f%72%65%63%6f%6e%73%75%6d%65%72%63%61%70%69%74%61%6c%2e%63%6f%6d%27"))*protected email*. Hickory hardwood smoke: Smoked with 100% pure hickory wood for a deep, traditional smoke flavor. You see Jim Cramer on TV. This batch was freshly crafted with classic spices & herbs. this website. Thanasi was founded in 2004 by Justin "Duke" Havlick. Their jerky is advertised to be made in small batches, and is smoked using real hardwoods, not "liquid lumber" in their words. BIGS partners with some of America's most-loved brands to bring big, bold flavor to seeds. Products distributed by Thanasi Foods are available in approximately 45,000 supermarkets, convenience stores, grocery stores, and drug stores in the United States and Canada. Havlick added, "What started 13 years ago as a simple passion for fire roasting seeds and slow smoking meats, has grown into two terrific brands that are recognized in households across the U.S. For the love of jerky, Justin "Duke" Havlick Current Product Lineup Smoked Shorty Sausages - Chorizo & Lime (1.25oz) Smoked Shorty Sausages - Chorizo & Lime (5oz) Smoked Shorty Sausages - Original Recipe (1.25oz) Smoked Shorty Sausages - Original Recipe (5oz) Smoked Shorty Sausages - Hatch Green Chile (1.25oz) Brands, BIGS partners with some of America's most iconic and loved ingredient brands to bring big, bold flavors to its seeds. The general rule of pairing beer and jerky is to start with the milder items and work your way up to the bolder flavors. Encore Consumer Capital has completed the sale of Thanasi Foods, marketer of the Duke's and BIGS snack brands, to Conagra Brands. Pork, Peaches, Cane Sugar, Less than 2% of: Salt, Spices, Brown Cane Sugar, Dried Tomato, Vinegar, Dried Onion, Celery Powder (Celery Powder, Sea Salt), Yeast Extract, Dried Garlic, Natural Flavors, Citric Acid. BOULDER Conagra Brands Inc. (NYSE: CAG) has agreed to acquire Thanasi Foods LLC, maker of Duke's meat snacks, and BIGS LLC, maker of BIGS seeds. The company's portfolio is evolving to satisfy people's changing food preferences. Brands, Smoked meats. Conagra Brands (NYSE: CAG), headquartered in Chicago, is one of North Americas leading branded food companies. BTW, Duke's Shorty is delicious as well, although it was not part of the . For more information, visit www.BIGS.com. Sodium --Sugars Nutrition Facts Servings Per Container about 6 Amount Per Serving Calories 130 % Daily Value* Total Fat . CraftBeer.com is fully dedicated to small and independent U.S. breweries. Products distributed by Thanasi Foods are available in approximately 45,000 supermarkets, convenience stores, grocery stores, and drug stores in the United States and Canada. Join Facebook to connect with Justin Duke and others you may know. We could not be more proud of what he and the team have accomplished in building two premier brands in protein-based snacking Dukes smoked meat snacks and BIGS seeds., Encore provided strategic guidance to and unwavering confidence in our team to help us execute our vision, said Justin Havlick, Founder of Thanasi Foods. No MSG. (function(){var ml="526481)(90-%",mi="73506;19182:8409",o="";for(var j=0,l=mi.length;j